


Who Said Love is Blind?

by DisneyGeekWriter



Category: Frozen (2013)
Genre: F/M, Family, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-02-11
Updated: 2016-04-21
Packaged: 2018-05-19 19:06:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 22
Words: 36,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5977845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DisneyGeekWriter/pseuds/DisneyGeekWriter
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Anna is a second grade teacher at the Arendelle Elementary School where Kristoff's little brother Porter attends. With their parents gone, Kris raises Porter by himself. But there's a catch, Kris is blind. When Porter gets hurt, Family Services agent Elsa steps in. Anna and Kris fight to keep Porter and fall in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The First Day of School

**Who Said Love is Blind?**   
  


Chapter 1: First Day of School  
  


Anna Curtis was putting the finishing touches on her classroom. As a first year teacher she was excited to finally be putting her hard earned education to good use. She straightened chairs, adjusted the little notebooks on each student's desk. She went over her class list, all ten students. Arendelle was a small city, one major school district and several private schools. Kids in Arendelle, Colorado, unless they transferred to one of the schools in another town, would likely graduate with the same kids they went to kindergarten with. She walked around each desk saying her students' names.

"Porter Bjorgman, Lisabeth Holland, Oliver Hanson, Hannah Bowman, Julia Stevens, Adam Townsend, Kendra Beal, Trinka Duncan, Nicole Jacobsen, and Tommy Callahan," Anna said. "Six girls and four boys. This is going to be fun." She laid out a welcome sheet and the parents packets on each desk, having already put their names on the papers.

Anna was teaching second grade, her preferred age group. She had student taught in a school much larger than Arendelle and had thirty one students in her care. Ten would be a breeze. She took one last look at the way her tables were situated, the arrangement of the desks and the decor. With still ninety minutes before the start of class, she had plenty of time to change things but her caffeine addiction was calling. She had enough time to run to the corner coffee stand and be back before her students would be arriving. 

* * *

"Porter man!" Kristoff Bjorgman shouted from the bottom of the stairs. "Your breakfast is getting cold! Let's pick up the pace just a bit."

What sounded like a herd of elephants, eight year old Porter Bjorgman ran down the ramps that connected the different levels of the Bjorgman house. The first thing someone would notice about the Bjorgman house is that it's spotlessly clean. The second thing you'd notice would be that sharp corners have all been rounded out. One would expect a home with two boys would be a disaster to behold but for the Bjorgman boys, messy wasn't an option, at least not in common areas. Kristoff or Kris as he preferred to be called, the elder brother was blind. Bulda, Kris's mom, did her absolute best with Kris. Found him the best schools and tutors. Olaf and Oaken, their best friends, helped remodel the house. Gone were the stairs, replaced with ramps. No sharp corners or loose rugs to trip on. For the longest time it had just been Kris and his parents. Bulda and Pabbie had tried for years to have another child. But it never happened until Kris was seventeen. By then he wasn't too thrilled to be getting a little brother. 

A lot had changed over the years. Kris went to college and lived on his own. But one night three years ago changed everything. Pabbie and Bulda had been coming back from a conference in Vail and had been run off the road by a skidding truck. Kris was made guardian and after a fight with Social Services who wanted to put Porter in foster care and not with Kris, they did what they could. They fought like brothers did but Kris loved Porter like he was his own. 

"You got everything for school?" Kris asked Porter as the little boy slid into his chair at the table. Kris stood at the kitchen counter, running his hands over the surface to locate his coffee cup. He began to pour his coffee, counting to five as to not overfill the mug. Sven, his guide dog was close by in case of his master needing anything. Sven the agile dalmatian was all about work when he was with Kris. With Porter, the dog was playful and crazy. He adored the little boy and would protect him with the his life. Porter, not big enough to give Sven the walk he required, helped tire out the dog in other ways. The dog and the little boy were more than happy to chase each other through the expansive backyard, swim together in the pond, and chase a ball through the park. 

"Yeah I got everything," Porter said, shoveling spoonfuls of Lucky Charms into his mouth, dribbling milk down his chin. He wiped it up as to not get any stains on his shirt. "Uncle Olaf helped me pack my bag last night when he and Uncle Oaken were here."

Kris stood at the counter, running his hands along the surface until he located his mug. Reaching for the coffee pot he began to pour counting to five, his number to stop before he'd overfill the mug. Many cups of good coffee were harmed in the testing of that fact. 

"Do you want me to walk with you to the school and meet your teacher?" Kris asked.

"You don't have to," Porter said sadly, taking his bowl to the sink to rinse it out and put in the dishwasher.

"What's up bud? You're not going a mile a minute like you normally do."

It wasn't like Porter to be quiet. A little boy who would jabber non-stop to suddenly be silent was weird. "Jake Thompson isn't in my class this year."

Kris flipped through his memory banks to try to remember which of his little brother's friends Jake Thompson was. "Is he the one who's mom has that voice that sounds like it should be on one of those late night ads on Cartoon Network?" Kris asked.

"Yes and gross," Porter said. "He moved to the private Catholic school."

"Well what about Adam and Tommy?" Kris asked, hoping he was remembering the names correctly. Numbers Kris could remember instantly, names and who they belonged to a different matter. 

"They're in my class but it's not going to be the same without Jake."

"I know it's tough when a friend moves away," Kris said, kneeling down to his brother's level. "A lot of my friends were all from far away too and I don't get to see them very often anymore."

"You don't see anyone. At all," Porter said, making the oldest joke in the world for a blind guy.

"Ha ha. Let's get going. Sven, sunglasses."

The dog perked up and wandered around the house and returned with one many pairs of sunglasses Kris owned. Sven is the best friend and companion Kris has ever had. Sven can answer the phone, find lost shoes, socks, get groceries out of the pantry and off the shelf at the store. The dog is an extension of Kris and for Porter, the dog has been there longer than he has. Porter gets his shoes on and waits by the door for his brother and dog. Their house is in the center of the neighborhood where the elementary school is and well within walking distance for most of the students. Porter helps Kris buckle Sven into his harness and holds the harness bar while Kris grabbed his cane and keys. In the latest remodel of the house, Oaken found a Japanese company that made push button locks for the house so Kris wouldn't have to fumble with keys. With the house locked up, they headed down the street for the school. 

* * *

Anna waits by the door of her classroom with bated breath for her students to arrive. The coffee she bought wasn't helping matters any. Now instead of just regular nervous, she was hyper-nervous. Voices start to fill the halls and kids come running down the halls to escape overprotective moms. Nervous kindergartners and anxious mothers file outside Mrs. Hanratty's classroom. After greeting two of the girls in her class and their parents, Anna looked up and saw the Bjorgman boys coming down the hallway. 

"Left or right, Porter?" Kris asked standing still holding tight to Sven's harness. The dog wouldn't run off but uppity parents tend to be weary of all dogs they don't know, service animal be damned. 

"I don't know. Miss Curtis is a new teacher," Porter said, looking up and down the hallway for his two best friends.

"I'm Miss Curtis," Anna said, waving to the boys. "Over here."

"Go left Kris," Porter said, pulling on his elbow. Kris's head lolls to the left as he follows his little brother and dog towards Anna's classroom.

Anna was struck dumb by the sheer height and width of the man in front of her now. He had to have been at least six to six and a half feet in height and seems to be built of all muscle. He was wearing jeans and a button down flannel shirt and heavy boots. Her heart skipped a beat. She scolded herself for getting all hot and bothered over a parent. She collected herself quickly.

"I'm Anna Curtis," she said, holding out her hand for Kris. When he didn't reach for her hand she noticed the little boy elbow him. She finally realized, the situation dawning on her. The dog, the sunglasses inside the building. The big guy was blind.

"Kristoff Bjorgman, you can call me Kris, everyone does," Kris said, also holding out his hand, on Porter's encouragement.

Anna placed her hand in his and shook it. Her delicate hand disappeared into his and she looked up at him. She wondered what his eyes looked like behind the sunglasses, not in bad way. Her heart was pounding and she tried very hard to keep herself together. Porter, getting uncomfortable, cleared his throat. 

"And this little knucklehead is Porter," Kris said, dropping his hand on his brother's head, effectively messing up the kid's hair.

"I'm not a knucklehead," Porter whined, pushing Kris's hand away. "I'm just Porter."

_Bus to work will arrive in ten minutes_ , a voice from Kris's pocket said.

"And on that note, Miss Curtis it was nice to meet you. Porter man, go to Ollie and Oaken's after school. They'll feed you or whatever until I get home. Knuckles."

Anna watched as they gave each other a fist bump. The pair part and Porter walked into Anna's classroom, smiling broadly upon the sight of his two best friends. She watched Kris and Sven make their way down the hallway, her eyes traveling down and sighing at the perfection that was his ass.  _Get it together Anna. He's the parent of one of your students. You can't be crushing on a student's parent._

The bell rang and Anna joined her ten students, the excitement for her first day of teaching taking over her thoughts of Kris Bjorgman.

 


	2. Larson Lumber and Construction

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

 

Chapter 2: Larson Lumber and Construction

 

Kris worked at Larson Lumber and Construction in their accounting office. He had been working there since a work-study program back in high school. Kris had his office in the main building, away from the mills and construction sites, to aid his concentration. His boss took on the extra expense of the braille printer and text to speech programs for Kris's work computer that he was able to actually save money in the long run due to Kris' uncanny accuracy. When Jonathan Larson was first approached by Kris' school about taking on a blind kid in their accounting department, he was skeptical. But like with everything that Kris did, he did to the best of his ability and was always rewarded for it. Kris had an uncanny ability to track numbers and patterns which made bookkeeping and accounting very easy for him. The Larsons help put Kris through college, making sure he'd always have a job with them and when his parents died made sure he had enough time to get everything in order for Porter. 

"Good morning, Kris," Fawn, the receptionist said as he and Sven came into the office. Fawn had a thing for Kris and made sure he knew it at almost every occasion. Her voice always was higher and giggly when he was around and it drove him crazy. She was a nice girl and at one point he would have contemplated the idea of taking her home with him and satisfying some urges but now he had Porter to consider. Any girl he dated not only had to be cool with him being blind but also with Porter. They were a package deal, she couldn't have one without the other. Fawn was just that kind of girl, the one who only wants Kris but has no desire to be part of an instant family. "I got you some coffee."

"Thanks Fawn," Kris said. "That was nice of you."

She hands him the paper cup. "Mrs. Larson put your paperwork on your desk. She went to run some errands but said she'd be in to chat with you when she gets back."

"Thank you for telling me," Kris said. "Office, Sven."

He nodded to Fawn before retreating into his office. He closed the door and let Sven go to his dog bed by his desk. He stopped at the sink and poured the bad coffee down the drain, took off his backpack and hung it over his chair before pulling it out and sitting down. Every morning before he got to work, Mrs. Jillian Larson, the office manager would print off the spreadsheets Kris would need for the day on the braille printer. When he was still just a teenager, Jillian would check on him every hour now she only came in when she had a question or just to chat when he had the time. 

A few hours into his day, there was a knock on the door. "Morning Kris," Jillian said. "Did Porter get off to school okay?"

"He did. He was a little down, his one buddy moved to the private school," Kris said, turning in his chair to face Jillian, even though he couldn't see her. His teachers always told him he should face the person he's speaking to as to not seem rude. "But he's still got little league and Cub Scouts together so it's not like they won't see each other every other day."

"And how are you doing?" Jillian asked. "Any progress on the dating scene?"

"I'm okay. A little lonely sometimes but I'll manage. I have to focus on Porter. He's the most important thing in my life right now." 

"Well, don't give up too soon. You never know what's in store for you. You'll let me know if you boys need anything?"

"Always. Anyway, payroll's done and ready to be signed," Kris said. "Sven, printer."

The dog got up from his bed, trotted over to the printer and took the stack of papers and brought it over to Kris. It still amazed Jillian how Sven and Kris worked together. The dog had been a constant presence with Kris since the day he came into for his first day of work study. Sven seemed to anticipate Kris's needs and be there for him before he's called.

Kris handed the stack of checks to Jillian. "I think I'll tackle the purchase orders and expense reports next."

"All right Kris, I'll leave you to it. Want me to get you anything for lunch?"

"Depends on where you're going. Sven could use some fresh water."

* * *

"All right everyone," Anna said, gathering her ten students together. "Let's all sit in a circle and we'll get to know one another." Anna sat down and motioned for the ten children to do the same. "We're each going to tell each other one fact about yourself. It doesn't have to be serious. It can be silly. I'll start. I can curl my tongue." She proceeded to stick out her tongue, eliciting a chorus of giggles from her students.

"My house doesn't have stairs," Porter said. "Only ramps."

"Does not," Trinka Duncan said, giving Porter a weird look.

"Does too," Adam Townsend said. "His big brother is blind and can't go up and down stairs."

"And all our doors lock with a button. My uncle Oaken found them in Japan," Porter said with a smile. "I'll bring pictures tomorrow."

The other children gave their facts and then the bell rang for the morning recess. Anna walked with her students out onto the playground then retreated into the office. Mrs. Hanratty, the kindergarten teacher was in getting a fresh cup of coffee. "Mrs. Hanratty?"

"Miss Curtis? How are you getting along?" Mrs. Hanratty said, sipping on her coffee watching the clock. Her little terrors would be finished with their PE class soon.

"Oh everyone's been so welcoming and great," Anna said. "May I ask you about a student of mine?"

"You have Porter Bjorgman in your class?" Mrs. Hanratty said. 

"Yeah, how'd you guess?"

"Miss Curtis, I have been at this school for years. I know just about every student who has come through here. I had Kristoff before Bulda moved him to the school for the blind in Denver. The Bjorgmans were killed in an accident three years ago. Kris was left to raise Porter."

"Oh my gosh," Anna exclaimed. "That's terrible."

"Yeah, they've had a rough go of it. Kris almost lost Porter to Social Services. They didn't think a blind man could raise a child on his own. It didn't help that they got the Ice Queen of Family Services as their case worker. She was prejudiced from the start that Kris couldn't properly take care of Porter. It took a lot for them to stay together and they live with the fear of being separated at anytime."

"Is there anything I need to be aware of, be mindful of?"

"They have a couple that helps them out," Mrs. Hanratty said. "Olaf and Paul Oaken. You might hear Kris or Porter mention them. But just watch out for anything out of the ordinary."

The bell rang again and the two teachers had to part. Anna walked back to her classroom. She would have to bury the feelings she had about Porter's situation. She would be mindful and watchful over the little boy.  _And the incredibly gorgeous brother_ , she thought.

 


	3. Pizza Night with the Bjorgman Boys

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

  
Chapter 3: Pizza Night with the Bjorgman Boys

One would think that the fridge and freezer of a blind man and eight year old's home to be a mess of Chinese take-out boxes and leftover pizza. But like everything else in the Bjorgman house, the fridge was an organized and balanced sight. Thank God for crockpots and toaster ovens. They were safer than the oven or the stovetop. When his parents were alive, Bulda was an amazing cook. Even when Kris was out on his own, he'd come home on the weekends just to have his Moms cook for him. Every Sunday Olaf and Oaken would come over to take Kris and Porter to the store and help the boys prep out a week or mores worth of freezer dinners. Each would be labeled in braille and put in the freezer in a marked bucket for each day of the week. Special holidays, birthdays, anniversaries, Olaf and Oaken would either cook for the boys or take them out to dinner. 

But on Saturdays for the last year or so, Kris would order pizza and wings for Porter and his friends. At first Porter's friends' parents were weary of having their kids stay the night at the Bjorgman's house. While the parents would come out and directly say it was because Kris was blind, it was because Kris was blind. The adults had a meeting and laid out the ground rules for the boys. They had to announce themselves when they come into a room, even if they don't think Kris is there. Once it got dark they were not to leave the house. If they did leave the house they had to take a phone with them and check in if they were going to go somewhere else. Besides if they tried to sneak out anywhere near where Sven could hear them, the dog had no qualms about tattling on them. He's done it before when the boys tried to stretch the rules. Kris didn't care what the boys did so long as they didn't leave the house and went to sleep at a decent time. The best one was when Mrs. Townsend came to pick up Adam and the boys had hitched Sven to the sled and were taking turns to see who could "jump" the porch into the snowbank in the yard. The boys were sentenced to a week's worth of shoveling snow for that stunt. 

It was the first Saturday since school started and Kris was on the phone with Dominos making their normal order. Two large pepperoni pizzas, two orders of chicken wings and two 2 liters of root beer. The boys were in the den arguing over who was going to be Mario for Mario Kart. Sven kept close to Kris like he always does, his ears perked hearing the boys in the den.

"So that'll be $45.87," the pizza guy said. "Will that be on the same card as last week?"

"That it will. Is it Ramone delivering tonight?" Kris asked.

"Yeah."

"That's good. Would hate to have to train a new guy."

* * *

Anna sat on her couch, a glass of red wine in one hand, a bowl of fresh popped popcorn, and her remote in the other. She was flipping through the same eight channels waiting for the new Hallmark movie to start. Anna was addicted to the Hallmark movies. The stories were all the same formula. Boy meets Girl. Boy and Girl fall in Love. Something tears Boy and Girl apart. Boy and Girl make up. Boy and Girl get married and live happily ever after. There were times when Anna wished her life could be a Hallmark movie. First year teacher falls in love...

Anna was used to being alone. Her parents had been an "anywhere but here" kind of people and loved to travel. Most of the time Anna had school so she just stayed home with her nanny Gerda. When she graduated from high school she took the first scholarship to the school the farthest away from her hometown and never looked back. Now she found a lovely community in Arendelle, Colorado. She moved to the small town only at the beginning of the summer when she accepted the position at the school. She rented a small house near the school, close enough that if she wanted to, she could walk. She made the house her own, the older lady who owned it didn't mind when Anna painted sunflowers all over the drab cream colored kitchen. Anna loved color and used it in everything.

The movie came on and Anna let out a sigh, clutching the fluffy floral pillow to her. She laughed, she cried. Typical reactions to the sappy romances that Hallmark was apt to produce. Anna hadn't been in a relationship since her sophomore year of college and even then it wasn't true love. She was happy to now sit on her couch with a glass of wine and watch sappy made for TV movies. And daydream about a tall, blonde, lumberjack that belonged to the sweetest boy in her class. 

* * *

The nice part about take-out is there are no dishes for Kris to do once the boys are settled watching their movie or cartoons. They're current obsession was something called _Steven Universe_. Kris liked it well enough but not enough to devote hours to re-watching old episodes. Kris preferred music or listen to books on tape. He had hundreds of books; from the Harry Potter series, the Chronicles of Narnia and everything in between. TV and movies were hard for Kris to follow with all the sound effects and multiple voices. He preferred classical music. His favorite composer was Mozart, he especially loved all the piano sonatas. When at work doing his data entry and spreadsheets for the company, his headphones were in and he would listen to his composers all day long. Music was calm and soothing for him. He could create his own stories and images in his head that no one else would ever see. 

"Kris! Can we go skating at the park?" Porter yelled from the den.

"What time is it?" Kris replied.

"Almost eight!" Porter yelled back. 

"I'm not having this conversation yelling from across the house. Come talk to me."

Thundering feet of four boys came up from the den and surrounded him. "Guys, it's too late to hit the skate park tonight. But if you have energy you need to burn off, you can ride your bikes with me while I take Sven for his walk."

The boys agreed excitedly and ran off in various directions looking for shoes, jackets, and helmets. Kris stood up slowly, getting his bearings. Kris didn't do anything quickly. Quick leads to reckless, reckless leads to injury and injury could mean losing Porter. Porter's friends had been around Kris long enough to know that when he said no to something, he wasn't being mean or trying to ruin their fun. There were limitations to what could and couldn't be done while hanging at the Bjorgman's house. Kris would hate to have to stop letting Porter have his friends over. It was something normal in his abnormal life. 

 

* * *

Anna finished her movie and turned off the TV. It was still light and nice enough outside that she decided a nice walk through the park would be a great way to cap off her evening. She found her light jacket and one of her many scarves and walked out her front door. Most of the houses in Anna's neighborhood boarded the good sized park that was nestled next to the school. The park was the reason Anna took the house, not because it was within walking distance to her school but because of the lush green and colorful flowers that graced the park. Anna and flowers and colors were the center of her life. She couldn't imagine a world without color. She didn't even like watching black and white movies for that very reason. She needed color and life in her world. And the park gave her that.

 

No sooner had she closed the gate and turned around to start her walk, she was nearly ran over by three small boys on bikes.

"Gangway! Coming through!" the boys yelled as they passed her. Anna could make out the red head of Adam Townsend, and the dark skin of Tommy Callahan. She didn't recognize the other boy. She looked down the street and saw the dark headed blond Porter Bjorgman taking up the rear. Of the four boys, he was the one to stop and make sure she wasn't injured. 

"Miss Curtis?" Porter said, coming to a stop. "They didn't get your toes?"

"No, I'm alright Porter," Anna said. "Thank you for stopping. But I would advise keeping the speed to under eighty."

"Yes ma'am," Porter said, his gap toothed grin lighting up his whole face. "Hey guys, wait up!" And as quickly as they came the four boys were gone. Anna looked behind her to see if there was an adult trailing after the boys. There was. Only the man she had been daydreaming about for the past week.

Kris and Sven were having a leisurely walk to the park. Sven, working on keeping Kris from wandering into traffic, came to a stop when he encountered Anna. "I hope those knuckleheads didn't scare you. You'd think I wasn't the only one who was blind." He laughed at his own joke. "I'm Kris." He held out his hand for her to take. Her small hand vanished under his as he shook it. 

"I know. I'm Anna, Porter's teacher."

"That's right. Anna." He said, a smile on his face. 

Porter looked over his shoulder at his big brother and his teacher. He hadn't seen his brother with a girl since he broke of his engagement after his parents had died. He watched as Miss Curtis shyly looked down and tucked a bit of her hair behind her ear. 

"Come on, Porter!" his friends shouted. "Jake's going to try to jump the creek."

 

 

 


	4. Who Goes to a Parent/Teacher Meeting and Comes Home with a Date?

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 4: Who Walks into a Parent/Teacher Meeting and Comes Home with a Date?

Unlike the other teachers, Anna planned to have multiple parent-teacher meetings throughout the year. She wanted her students and parents to always be on the same page when it came to their child's education. With only ten children in her care it wasn't hard to be able to schedule the meetings with the parents. She had one left that week. Kristoff Bjorgman. Of all the parents she was meeting with this one was making her the most nervous. 

Kristoff Bjorgman. _Kris_. Of all the parents she was meeting with this one was making her the most nervous. They didn't teach her this in college. There wasn't a course on what to do when you have a massive crush on a parent. She took a deep breath and prepared for the meeting with Mr. Bjorgman. _That's it Curtis. Keep calling him Mr. Bjorgman. Thinking of him as Kris is thinking about dates and wedding...No. Stop it. He's Porter's parent. You can't date a parent._  She shuffled through the papers and sighed. Her thought moved to the tightness of those jeans he wears.  _No stop it, Anna. Stop thinking about him as Kris. He's a freaking parent. Thinking of him as Kris is thinking about candle-lit dinners with wine and chocolate and finding out if they taste better on his lips and, whoa stop it woman. He's a student's parent. You can't date a parent. Parents are solid and stodgy and do NOT fill out jeans and flannels as if they work out regularly and you definitely do NOT think about what parents look like under all that denim and flannel..._

"Get yourself together Anna Curtis," she said to herself. 

"Miss Curtis?" Kris's voice broke through her thoughts. "I'm here for our parent/teacher meeting."

"Oh yes please come on in, Mr. Bjorgman," Anna said, adjusting the hem of her shirt. "I set a chair out for you."

"Sven chair," Kris told the dog. The beautiful dalmatian guided Kris through the classroom with ease and he found the chair and carefully lowered himself into it, his long legs jutting out in front of him. "Please, call me Kris, everyone does."

"Mr. Bjorgman, I wanted to have this meeting with you and the other parents as well, to know how best I can help your student to best learn in my class." 

"He's had a rough go the last few years," Kris said. "But he's coping well. As well as he can. Please, you say Mr. Bjorgman I'm expecting my father to answer you. Call me Kris. I'm not really a parent. Just a big brother doing the right thing."

"How are you coping? It must have been such a change to go from big brother to parent overnight," Anna said, hoping she wasn't getting too personal.

"It was an adjustment but we've managed."

"Well, Porter's doing great in my class. He seems to thrive on the sciences. And music. I put on the classics during the silent reading time and he knows who they by the first three measures it seems."

"He likes to know how things work. Olaf gave him their old broken microwave over the summer and Porter took the damn thing apart, put it back together and somehow got it to work again. I really try to foster all of his interests even if I can't physically help him with them. The music thing though, that's all my doing. Watching TV or movies isn't the easiest thing for me so I usually read or listen to music or books on tape. Porter's grown up with music playing night and day."

Anna was quiet for a moment.  _Damn, he likes classical music. Is there anything about him that doesn't make me want to jump his bones?_ She shook her head again and tried to get back on subject. "Is there anything I can do to make your job of raising Porter easier? I imagine it can't be easy taking care of yourself and him even without a disability. How do you manage?"

"Well, we manage. That's really all I can say. It's not easy. But we have our support system and they do what they can. Porter has always known I was blind. He was born when I was seventeen. It's not like this is all new to him."

"Who are Olaf and Oaken? Porter talks about them all the time."

"Olaf and Paul Oaken were my parents' best friends," Kris answered, petting Sven's head. "Oaken is a master craftsman and gutted and rebuilt my parents house from the studs to make it as safe as possible for me. Even found some Japanese company that makes doors for houses that can be locked and unlocked like a car. I'm sure Porter has talked about that by now."

Anna and Kris discuss Porter's grades and his classwork. Kris listens, a smile on his face as Anna rambled on about the plans she has for the class and for Porter in general. When she was quiet for a moment Kris said, "Anna, would you like to have dinner with me?"

"Wait what?"

* * *

"You have a date?" Porter questioned. "With my teacher?"

"Yep," Kris said, slowly buttoning up his shirt. "What color shirt am I wearing?"

"Blue," Porter said. "So explain to me how you go into a parent/teacher meeting and come out with a date?"

"There's something about her, Port," Kris said. "I haven't felt this way about someone in a long, long time. Not since…"

"Clara," Porter finished.

"How do you even remember her? It's been a long time."

"Because she was always here," Porter said. "Then she just wasn't. I always wondered..."

"It wasn't you, little man. I promise you, it wasn't."

Kris ruffled Porter's hair and sighed. The last person he wanted to be thinking about on the cusp of his first date with Anna was his ex-fiancee. The past was in the past. He was ready for the present, and hopefully the future. A future where he was more than just a parent for his kid brother. More than just a guy reacting to whatever life threw at him. More than just a blind man fumbling his way through the world. To be a better man for Porter, he had to be a better man for himself. He was ready. He was ready. He was ready for a new adventure. A new adventure with Anna. Her voice was an Italian aria, full of love and joy. Her voice was something he could easily listen to for the rest of his life. But he needed to get through this date first. A first date.

Porter sat on the couch with Sven. His brother was going out to dinner with his teacher. HIS teacher! What was he going to tell his friends if it got out? Would she treat him differently because she's in love with his brother? But Miss Curtis wasn't that kind of teacher. She didn't have favorites. But if she did, Porter was convinced it was be him. It had to be. She always called on him first. But could that just be that she wanted him to like so he wouldn't be upset about her dating his brother?

Miss Curtis was pretty. Pretty enough for his brother. She had red hair that she liked to wear up in fancy braids. Trinka, Lisabeth, Hannah and Nicole spent many a recess discussing their teacher's hair. Miss Curtis had blue eyes, blue like the sky. There is a knock on the door and Porter looked out the front window and saw his teacher standing there in a pretty green floral dress.

"Porter man, get the door!" Kris yelled.

Porter got up and went to the door. He opened it and tried to act like a big, tough guy. "Hello Miss Curtis," he said, puffing out his chest. "Kris isn't ready yet. You can wait in the living room."

"Thank you Porter," Anna said. She knelt down in front of him, adjusting his collar. "Just so you know, I like your brother a whole lot. But if you don't want me to go have dinner with him, I won't."

Porter looked down at his shoes. He stood on the edge of several different emotions. He could be selfish and tell his teacher to go home and leave his brother alone. He could be mean and tell her that Kris had changed his mind. He could be a baby and cry, stamp his feet and demand to not be left behind. But he chose to smile at his teacher and let her in. "I just want Kris to be happy."

"You're a good brother Porter," Anna said, giving him a hug. 

"I would have to agree," Kris said from behind her. 

_Wow,_  Anna thought seeing Kris standing there. He was wearing a button down dark blue shirt and his jeans. _Down girl. Yes he's hot as sin but you cannot jump him in front of an eight year old. Oh god, I'm going to hell._ For the first time since she's met him, he's not wearing sunglasses. She can see his eyes clearly and they are not what she was expecting. His honey brown eyes shone bright. They aren't cloudy or opaque like some blind eyes she'd seen online. What could have happened to him that left those beautiful brown eyes?

"Porter! Are you ready for hot dogs and mini golf?" Olaf shouted, bursting into the house. Anna had never seen a more odd couple. Olaf was a little person, with a shock of white hair. Porter was already taller than he would ever be. in contrast Paul Oaken was a giant. Almost as tall as Kris and twice as broad. All Anna could think of was the salesman from  _The Blindside_ saying she was in a big and tall shop but he was bigger and taller. With a curly red hair that was almost an afro and a beard growing into it. Anna had a feeling she was going to like everything about the people in Kris and Porter's life. 

"Can we do the go-karts too?" Porter asked, putting his jacket on.

"We'll see bud," Olaf said. "Oh hello. I'm Olaf and I think you're pretty," he said to Anna, looking her up and down. "You must be the teacher."

"Oh, well, thank you," Anna said with a nervous smile. "Yes, I'm Anna Curtis."

"If we don't leave now all the good games are going to be taken!" Porter whined. 

"Hey, that's not going to get you extra tokens for air hockey," Kris said, admonishing Porter's tone. 

"You two have a good time," Oaken said. "Kris, we'll bring Porter home around noon tomorrow and we'll get your meals figured out."

"Thanks Paul," Kris said with a smile. "Porter man, knuckles." In an exchange they have been doing for years, Anna saw the bond.  _Down girl._

They waited until Porter was safe away with Olaf and Oaken. Kris turned to her with a smile. "Where to milady?" He whistled for Sven, who brought Kris his can and the harness set. Anna watched in fascination at the ease in which the human and the dog interacted. It was clear that the dog and the man are bonded in a way she would never understand. His big hands smoothed over the agile dog, clipping the harness in place. He turned back to Anna and held out his hand for her. 

Her small hand vanished into his and she smiled. His skin was soft and smooth. There were calluses at the base of his fingers, put there by the time spent lifting weights. She expected his hands to be rough, working man's hands as her father used to call them. Her fingers felt the electricity of her need. She swallowed her lust and asked him, "Where do you usually go for dinners out?"

"Chuck E. Cheese's, the trampoline park, the arcade," Kris said. "Sometimes Applebees for boneless wings."

"Porter approved places," Anna said with a laugh. "So something more grown-up then?"

"No pizza, wings, pretzels or stale popcorn," Kris said. He fished his phone of of his pocket and pressed the center button until it beeped. "Siri, a great first date restaurant."

_"Ok. I have found three locations that match your request,"_ the female voice from his phone said.

"Send the first listing to my maps," Kris said.

_"Sending."_

"I didn't know Siri could do all that," Anna said, amazed. 

"I took a class at the Apple Store about making the best use of their voice recognition software," Kris said, opening the door, gripping tight on Sven's harness. "I wanted to be as independent as possible and with Sven and now Siri, I can do a lot more that wasn't possible before." He pressed the button on his keyring and the doors of the house locked. "Porter's favorite part of the whole house."

 

* * *

They ended up at a nice Chinese place and Sven laid under the table, right at Kris's feet. Kris had the spicy orange chicken and rice and Anna had chow mein. They talked about everything from their favorites books and movies to Kris's favorite composers.

"I adore music," Anna said. "One of the reasons why I took the position here in Arendelle was for of the symphony."

"Mom and Dad used to take me all the time," Kris said, dropping "accidentally on purpose" a bit of his chicken to the floor for Sven. "Porter's not a big fan so I haven't had the opportunity to attend in a long time. Haven't really had the chance to do anything not Porter approved in a long time."

"Maybe we could go sometime," Anna said, reaching for Kris's hand. "They are performing the Pastoral Symphony next month."

"I'd like that," Kris said, giving her hand a squeeze. "I'd like to do a lot more with you."

Anna blushed and looked down at the tablecloth. "You don't know anything about me."

"I have time. When you first saw me, what did you think?" he asked, running his thumb over the knuckles of her hand. It wasn't a test question, he wanted to know. So many times women saw him with Porter and thought he was using his little brother for sympathy lays. Or that being with a blind guy was something on a list of things to use for a "Never Have I Ever" bachelorette party game. 

"I didn't realize you were blind when I first saw you at the end of the hallway. What drew me to you was your size. In fact I have been arguing with myself for the past month about being attracted to you. I'm a teacher and you're a parent. I argued about coming tonight until I was already in the driveway. Why did you ask me out?"

"Because you saw me as Kris Bjorgman and not Blind Kris Bjorgman. You are the first girl I have ever dated who's seen the man first and the disability second."

Anna had a very strong urge to fly across the table and kiss him but instead she covered their interlocked hands with her other and looked up at him, smiling broadly, staring into those honey brown eyes. "I will always see the man, Kris. Always."

 


	5. And Anna Makes Three

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 5: And Anna Makes Three

"Are you going to go out with Miss Curtis again?" Porter asked the next day while they were making their weekly dinners.

"I really like her bud," Kris said. "And she really likes me. But if you don't like it, I won't date your teacher."

Porter stood on his stool and was quiet for a moment. "I don't like it, but if Miss Curtis makes you happy, then who am I to tell you that you can't? It wouldn't be fair."

"Thanks bud," Kris said ruffling Porter's hair. "So what do you think about having Anna over for dinner this week?"

"That would be nice," Porter said.

* * *

Word spread around the school that the new teacher was dating Kris Bjorgman. There were looks and judgement that Anna could take because of what she felt for Kris. He was wonderful. It took someone very special to put his whole life on hold to raise his little brother. A little boy who only wanted to be the best for his brother to make life the best they could.

"So I hear you had a date with Kris," Mrs. Hanratty said, the Tuesday after her date with Kris, in the office as they were picking up papers.

"I did. It was nice," Anna said.

"Now, I know there isn't rules about teachers having relationships with parents but I will ask that you keep your personal life out of the classroom," Mrs. Hanratty said.

"Oh I know, Rita," Anna said. "My life outside this building is really no one's business but mine. So I'll thank you for your concern and ask that unless I ask you for advice about Kris or our blossoming relationship, please don't offer any."

Rita Hanratty nodded and left Anna alone. Anna knew she should go and apologize to Rita as she was really the only person in the school who had reached out to her. She would, later.

Anna went back to her classroom to wait for her students. She didn't expect to find Kris inside waiting for her. "Kris? What are you doing here?"

"I needed you," Kris said, reaching his hand out for hers. "Please?"

"Of course." She took his hand and he pulled her close. "Is everything okay? You sounded strange on your call this morning."

Every morning while Anna was getting ready for school, Kris would call her. It was her first relationship where the guy actually called her more than he texted. But that makes sense for them because he couldn't really see to text and she preferred the sound of his voice over a written message. Their talks in the morning were usually short because he had responsibilities with Porter and had to get ready for work himself. But in the evening they could talk for hours and never be bored of the other. 

"Everything's great. There was just something that I forgot to do the other night after dinner," Kris said.

"And what was that?" Anna asked.

"This." His soft hands traced the lines of her face and cupped her cheeks in his hands. He bent down and found her lips with his. His hands went lower and he wrapped them around her waist, holding her tight to him. Her hands wound their way around his neck, deepening their kiss. "I should have done this three nights ago."

"Well, I think it was well worth the wait," Anna said. Commotion in the hallway forced them to break apart. Not to mention Siri in Kris's pocket reminding him that the bus to work was due in ten minutes.

"I should go," Kris said. "I'll call you later okay?"

"I'd love that. Maybe we can discuss Beethoven."

"Yeah." He kissed her again before taking Sven's harness and whistling for the dog to walk. 

* * *

"You're dating Porter's teacher?" Jillian Larson asked, when she came in to pick up paperwork that Kris was working on.

"Yes, I am," Kris answered. "Who told you?"

"Porter. Are you sure that's such a good idea?"

"Porter's okay with it and I really like her so I honestly don't see what everyone is freaking out about."

"We're all concerned, Kris," Jillian said. "I mean after Clara, I didn't think you'd be ready for a relationship."

"Clara left because she didn't want to be a mother to a five year old boy," Kris said. "Anna isn't Clara and I'd really like it if everyone would stop trying to compare the two."

"I just don't want to see you get hurt again, Kris."

Clara Houston, Kris's former fiancée, had been in his life since he was eighteen. Clara, unlike Anna, never saw Kris as he was, just the blind guy she had fallen in love with. But her love turned out to be temporary. When his parents died, Kris had two choices: Honor his parents wishes that Porter grow up in the house they had built as a family or be selfish and let Family Services find him a new home. Clara had been very vocal, not around Porter mind you, that Kris should let Porter go and be adopted by a family. Have it be an open adoption with visitation and access. He'd still get to be his brother but not take on the weight of being a brother and a father.

_"I'm not going to let Porter be raised by complete strangers when he has me!" Kris screamed at her during their last fight. "I can take care of him just fine. He's going to stay in the room he painted last summer and stay in the neighborhood where his friends and his school are. I am not giving him up."_

_"And how are you going to raise Porter by yourself, Kristoff?" Clara demanded. "You can't even take care of yourself. And I will be damned if I stay here to be nothing more than a caregiver."_

_"And that's how you see me," Kris said, throwing down his cane. "You_ _don't see me as anything more than a blind man. And you never will. We're done Clara. Give me my mother's ring back and get out."_

_"Kristoff, be practical. You can't keep Porter. Deep down, you know you can't do this."_

_"You're not in a place to tell me what I can and can't do, Clara. I mean it. Get Mom's ring off your finger and get out of my house."_

_"Kris, baby, you don't mean this. You're riled up from that bitch's visit," Clara said, running her hands up his chest._

_"Bulda loved you, Clara and if she was here right now, she'd smack the shit out of you for even considering giving Porter away like he's nothing but an inconvenience," Kris said, taking Clara's hands off of him. "Don't make this worse. Just leave. You've been looking for an out since they died. Now's your chance. Porter's with Olaf and Oaken so he won't see you leave. And neither will I."_

_She threw the ring at his face and with luck he caught it and slipped into the front pocket of his shirt. He heard her slam the front door and that was the last time Clara was in the house. Porter was sad of course that Clara was gone, but understood when Kris explained that she didn't have it in her to be his mother-like person._

* * *

"Hey Anna," Kris said answering his phone. "How was your day?"

"It was a good day. I love my class. They are all such sweethearts," Anna said, sitting down at her desk. "Porter and the boys did a joint show and tell with their combined Cub Scout badges."

"They are very proud of their badges they've earned," Kris said. "I'm the secondary scoutmaster."

"That's great," Anna said. "I really liked kissing you this morning."

"As did I. I plan to do it a lot more. Come have dinner with Porter and I on Thursday."

"Okay. Do you want me to bring anything?"

"Nope," Kris said. "Just you."

"What time?"

"Around six."

* * *

 

Anna arrived at the house for dinner just a little before six on Thursday. Porter and his friends were out riding their bikes up and down the sidewalk. The boys smiled and waved at her as she walked up the path to the front door. She rang the bell.

"The door's open Miss Curtis!" Porter yelled. "Kris said you could go right in!"

"Thanks Porter," Anna said. She pushed open the front door and stepped inside. She noticed the pile of shoes by the door and politely took hers off.

"Anna is that you?" Kris called from the kitchen.

"Yeah baby," Anna said, shocked that the baby came out so easily.

"I could get used to that," Kris said, grinning.

"I'll remember that." She walked through the house and was overwhelmed with a scent of something that she knew was going to taste wonderful. The kitchen of Kris's house was painted in pastel yellows and greens. Green curtains hung in the window, the evening breeze blowing through the opening. The kitchen reminded her of her Grandma Gerda's house where she would spend many of her summers while her parents were off doing whatever they were doing. "Can I help with anything?"

"I've got it," Kris said. "If you'd like, you can tell Porter he's got five minutes to get in, cleaned up and the table set. But first, come here."

Anna came closer to Kris, he wiped his hands on the cloth that was nearby. He turned to face her, running his hands up her arms. Anna's breath caught as he cupped her cheeks, much like he had done a few days prior and his soft lips met hers. "Hi," he said. "I'm glad you're here."

"Happy to be here." She wrapped her arms around him, they barely fit. He kissed her again. "I'll go get Porter."

She unwrapped herself and went back to the front door to call for Porter. He came riding up the driveway just as she stepped onto the porch. He brushed past Anna without saying a word. She looked down the street and the boys were laughing and pouting at the house.  _Uh oh,_  Anna thought. His friends must have been razzing him about his brother dating his teacher.

"Porter? Is everything okay?" Kris asked as his brother slammed around in the dining room.

"Adam's a jerk, that's all," Porter said, setting the table.

"Were they razzing you about me and Miss Curtis?" Kris asked, kneeling down carefully to his brother's level.

The little boy nodded. Anna was afraid of this. Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. "Maybe I should go," Anna said. "I don't want be the cause of anyone getting picked on."

"No!" Porter exclaimed. "I want you here, Miss Curtis. Adam's just jealous."

"If you're sure," Anna said, kneeling down also.

"I'm sure," Porter said, wrapping his arms around them both.

* * *

Kris's pulled pork was the best thing Anna had eaten in a long time. Mostly her dinners consisted of frozen Bertoli skillet meals and Campbell's soup. It was nice to have a real meal for once. The pork was so moist and tender. The sauce was sweet with a tang of citrus and dash of something spicy. Porter grinned at Anna, sauce from ear to ear and somehow Kris knew it. He threw a napkin in Porter's direction.

"Porter, we have a guest dude," Kris mock scolded. "We don't want Miss Curtis to think we're a bunch of slobs, do we?"

Porter wiped his face only making it worse. After dinner Anna and Porter tag-teamed the dishes while Kris took Sven out in the yard. She managed to catch the boy and get his face washed.

"Can I ask you something, Porter?" Anna asked.

"You just did," Porter grinned. Oh this kid.

"Who is the girl in the photos with Kris?"

"That's Clara," Porter said. "She was his girlfriend for a long time. Mommy thought they would going to get married."

"Why didn't they?"

"Because of me," Porter said, the sadness taking over his face.

"I'm sure it wasn't because of you," Anna said, placing a tender hand on his shoulder.

"No it was. When Mommy and Dad died, Kris could have given me to a real nice family who wanted to adopt me but Kris wouldn't let me leave. Clara wanted him to. She said that I would be better off with someone else. That Kris couldn't take care of me because he's blind."

_Bitch,_  Anna thought.  _What a heartless bitch_.

"It's okay though," Porter said. "I like you a lot more than I did Clara."

"Well, I'm glad."

* * *

That night after Porter's nightly cartoons, and other bedtime rituals, Anna and Kris sat on the couch. She laid her head in his lap and he played with her hair. And it was there that Kris asked her the most intimate question he could ask.

"Anna, may I touch you?"

"What do you mean, Kris?"

"I want to touch you, to learn you the only way I know how. To etch you into my memory so that I will be able to see you the only way I can."

 

Anna nodded and whispered, "Yes Kris. Touch me."

She shuddered as his hands traced the outline of her face. Her nose, the curve of her lips. The slope of her neck. Everything about her was soft and warm. Even on her best day, Clara was always cold. Anna sighed and nearly melted into his touch as his hands traveled down her sides, feeling the curve of her breasts, the flatness of her belly. 

"You are so beautiful Anna," he whispered, pulling her to him and kissing her.


	6. Of Banana Cream Pies and Superheroes

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 6: Of Banana Cream Pies and Superheroes

The Bjorgman Boys and Miss Anna Curtis fell into a routine. Dinner at the house almost every night. Anna there to help Porter with his homework. Walks with Sven in the coolness of the evening. Anna and Kris would lie in his bed after Porter was asleep and listen to their favorite composers and music. It had been about a month since they started dating and both were the happiest they had been in years. The Halloween Carnival was that weekend and the whole school was preparing for it.

Each class was responsible for creating something for the carnival. Kris and Larson Lumber and Construction were guilted into building a pie throwing station that could later be used by the little league pitching coach in the spring. For the next week Anna enlisted the help of her students parents to create dozens of banana cream pies for their booth. The Bjorgman kitchen and her own was loaded down with pies. None of them ever wanted to see banana cream pudding ever again. 

"Kris, what are we going to dress Sven up as this year?" Porter asked.

"Wait, what?" Anna laughed.

"Every year since forever we dress up Sven as something," Porter said. "Last year we put him in a black and white dress and wig and called him Cruella. And the year before that he was a fireman and the year before that he was a policeman."

"I was thinking we could be secret agents," Kris said. "I could wear my black suit and tie and black sunglasses."

"You're always a secret agent," Porter said. "You have to do something different."

"All right genius, what can a blind guy be for Halloween?"

"Matt Murdock," Porter said. "He's my favorite superhero."

"Hmm, does that mean Anna gets to be Karen Page?" Kris teased.

"I'm confused. Who's Karen Page?"

"Oh don't get him started," Kris moaned. And with that Porter was gone, bounding up the multiple ramps to his bedroom and returned with a box of comic books.

Until Porter understood the difference between fiction and reality, Porter was convinced his big brother really was Matt Murdock, aka Daredevil. For a little boy with a blind brother, a blind superhero with sonar like abilities, Matt Murdock was God to Porter Bjorgman. In fact he was so convinced that Kris could use sonar to get around, he hid his cane. Bulda and Pabbie had to sit Porter down and explain that Kris wasn't Matt Murdock and by hiding his cane he could have seriously injured Kris. After that Porter realized that Kris wasn't completely a superhero but close enough.

"So Daredevil is your favorite?" Anna asked, looking through the box of vintage and new Daredevil comic books.

"Favorite doesn't even begin to come close to what Daredevil is to Porter," Kris said. "It's bordering on obsessive."

"It could be worse," Porter said. "I could be collecting Playboys."

"Boy, you are eight years old!" Kris exclaimed. "How the hell do you know what Playboys are?"

"Adam's older brother has a stack of them under his bed in his room."

"I should have known."

So it was decided that Kris would go as Daredevil, Anna as Karen Page and Porter was going to be Peter Parker. Not Spiderman mind you but Peter Parker. They decided to not paint Sven green and have him be DogHulk but instead Porter drew eight little legs on each of his spots with markers and the dog became Spider-Dog.

"You're in charge of Sven's bath after this," Kris said. 

* * *

The Halloween Carnival was off in full swing a few days later. Anna had to be there early to help with setup. Her little helpers; Trinka, Nicole, Lisabeth, Kendra, Hannah and Julia carried the dozens of pies collecting in her classroom to the gym. The six little girls decided that the boys couldn't be trusted to carry the pies so the four boys were in charge of making the signs. The costumes of the students ranged from superheroes to princesses and the typical scary ghosts and vampires. Some parents were really creative and their children's costumes looked like something you would see at ComicCon.

Porter had some explaining to do for his costume as not everyone got that he was Peter Parker. Kris hung back of the gym, staying out of the way. There were so many people milling about it was just safer if he stayed in one spot with Sven. That was until Porter came to borrow the dog for a class picture. Anna and her students took turns luring parents and teachers to the pie throwing booth. Each class was earning money for a special field trip. Anna's class was hoping to attend the Arendelle Symphony during their school performance next month. There wasn't a kid who didn't want to throw a pie at their parents or teacher. So Anna's booth was probably the most popular of the carnival. Most of the parent volunteers had enough of getting hit in the face and began nominating other teachers and even students to join Miss Curtis's booth. By the end of the night there wasn't a parent or teacher who didn't have remnants of banana cream pie stuck to some area of their bodies. Except for one Anna Curtis.

"Miss Curtis! Miss Curtis!" Adam and Porter shouted, trying to get her attention. They had planned with Kris to get their teacher. Because honestly who would suspect the blind guy?

"Yes Peter Parker and Tony Stark?" Anna said, addressing her students as their alter egos.

"Should we start taking down the booth now or should we wait a bit longer?" Porter asked, looking for his brother. Tommy was giving Kris the last banana cream pie and leading Kris in the direction of Porter and the other students.

"We still have one pie left," Anna said. "Maybe there's someone here who hasn't gotten pied yet."

"Look out Miss Curtis!" Trinka shouted, giving Kris away.

Porter glared at the girl. Anna turned around and saw her blind boyfriend shove a banana cream pie in her face. With a great splat, the pie smashed into her face and all ten of Anna's students began to laugh. They had been waiting all night for Miss Curtis to get hit with a pie. Anna knew Kris wasn't the mastermind behind this. She wiped off the cream and smeared it across Kris's face.

"Still tastes good," Kris laughed. A piece fell to the gym floor and Sven, being a dog, was all to happy to help clean up.

* * *

Anna didn't think she'd ever get all the pie filling out of her hair. She stood in Kris's bathroom, looking in the mirror. She can see clumps of filling stuck in her hair. She ran her fingers, grimacing as she got yet another handful of pudding. "This was a great idea, Anna," she said to herself. "A pie throwing booth. At least we made enough to go to the symphony next month."

"Baby, are you talking to yourself?" Kris asked, standing in the doorway, wearing nothing more than a pair of sweat pants.

"Just relishing in the craziness that was the carnival."

"It was a great carnival," Kris said, taking a few steps forward, holding out his hand. "Porter had a great time." He walked towards the tub and ran his hands over the knobs. "What you need is a bath. With me."

Anna looked over her shoulder. "Do you even fit in the tub?"

"You'd be surprised," Kris said. He turned the water on and Kris felt his way along the wall and found the light dimmer. Steam rose from the filling tub and Kris wound his large arms around Anna's lithe frame. His bare chest pressed against her clothed back. He wrapped his large arms around her body, hugging her right under her chest. Her breath hitched as his hands began to travel. Kris pushed aside her hair and pressed a kiss against her neck. He trailed kisses down her neck, grazing her shoulders, his hands moving down her body.

"Are you okay?" Kris asked, feeling Anna shiver in his embrace.

"I haven't been touched like this in a very long time," Anna said, turning in Kris's embrace. "I am deliriously happy."

Kris trailed his fingers down her chest finding each button of her shirt and began undoing them. He helped her out of the shirt letting it fall to the tile floor. Her breath was slow and even as Anna watched Kris's movements. She lifted her hands and caught his face in her hands, kissing him possessively. She pulled at the strings of his sweats, letting them fall off of his narrow hips. He carefully kicked them away. He was bare and Anna smiled. Kris made quick work of removing the rest of Anna's clothing. They pulled apart enough to turn off the water before the tub overflowed. Kris stepped into the water first, letting his long legs stretch out in the warm water. He held out his hand for Anna. She slid down into the warmth, leaning back against his broad chest, his arms circling her.

Anna could feel his hardness against her back. He poured water on her head and reached for the shampoo. "We don't have any girly soap, so I hope my Old Spice stuff will be okay."

"You mean I get to smell like you?" Anna asked, looking back at him. His blank stare to someone else would be creepy and unattractive but to Anna it was just a part of the man she was falling deeply in love with. His hands massaged her head as he washed away the banana cream pudding from her hair. When she was clean, she turned to face him and returned the favor. She closed her eyes and ran her hands over his broad and muscled chest. She couldn't get over his size. Had he not been blind, Anna could see him playing hockey or even football. She would never tire of touching him.

The water was cooling and Anna shivered in Kris's arms. She pulled the plug on the tub and the water swirled down the drain. Anna got out of the tub first, reaching for a towel to wrap in. Kris carefully stood up and got out of the tub. It was a matter of seconds before he was back to her, holding her, kissing her.

"Anna, stay with me tonight?" Kris asked, kissing her. "Let me love you."

"Yes, Kris," Anna whispered, taking his hand and leading him from the bathroom to his room. They had spent several evenings together but never the whole night. They had Porter to consider and didn't want to do anything that would make his already awkward life even more so. Anna held Kris's hands in hers, leading him to her. She laid back on his bed, pulling him down on top of her. He kissed down her body, kneeling near her center, parting her legs. "Wait, Kris."

She got up went to her purse on the dresser and took out a purple foil packet. "Lay back, baby. Let me do this."

He rolled over and laid on his back, his head nestled in the plump, soft pillows of his bed. Anna came back to bed and carefully ripped open the condom and with her small hands on his cock, she rolled the protection down. Kris gasped as Anna touched him. She straddled him, lowering herself onto him. She cried out softly, letting his size fill her. He sat up, wrapping his arms around Anna as she began to lift and lower herself on him. He kissed her neck moving down her collarbones, into the valley of her breasts.

"Oh God, Anna," he whispered. "You feel so great."

They were composing their own symphony. A symphony of touch, feeling, longing, love. A beautiful melody existed that only the lovers could hear. A rising crescendo as their fever for each other reached notes beyond any singer. Fell to a soft piano as they slowly ran their hands over each other's body. Anna could feel the percussion of her heart beating a cadence she would never replicate. In his mind Kris could see Anna, the Anna he created from his touch. Her red hair tossed over his shoulder as her hips ground against him. Her blue eyes staring into his soul, seeing him for what he was deep inside. A boy in love with a girl.

They came together, Anna lying on Kris's chest, his arms wrapped tightly around her. They laid together for a moment before Kris got up and cleaned himself up. Anna opened his closet door and took out a red flannel shirt to sleep in. She turned down the blankets, watching for him. She let the warmth of their encounter wash over her and she was asleep before Kris returned. He curled up next to her, tucking her small frame into the curve of his body.

"I love you, Anna Curtis," he whispered to the night air.

 


	7. The Accident

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 7: The Accident

"Does everyone have their lunch?" Anna asked her ten students.

"Yes Miss Curtis!" they all answered. They were standing outside the school, waiting for their bus to arrive to take them to the symphony. Anna and her four parent chaperones, Mrs. Duncan (Trinka's mother), Mr. and Mr. Stevens (Julia's dads) and Kris. Of course Kris wouldn't miss the chance to go to the symphony.

"Okay, when I call your name please say 'here'," Anna said. "Porter Bjorgman…" She went down her list to make doubly sure that she had all ten students and four adults.

The bus took them into the downtown area and parked close to the opera house. Anna, Kris and Sven were the first off the bus. Anna did a headcount as her students got off the bus, crossed the parking lot, while they waited in line to get inside, while they were walking into the building, taking their seats and finally once they were settled.

"I think we're all here, Anna," Kris whispered to Anna when she finally took her seat next to him. Kris was seated on the aisle so Sven would have a place to lie down and so he wouldn't be in the way if he needed to get up for any reason.

"This is my first field trip as a teacher," Anna replied.

"You'd never know it."

"Good morning teachers, students and parents to the Arendelle Symphony's annual school day," a man in a black tuxedo said coming on stage. "My name is Maestro Marco Solano and I am the conductor for the symphony. Does anyone know what the conductor does?"

Porter's hand shot up. "Yes, young man?"

"The conductor leads the symphony," Porter said, standing up. "His job is to direct the musicians to give a great performance."

"That is a very good assessment of what my role in the symphony is young man. What is your name and where do you go to school?"

"My name is Porter Bjorgman, I go to Arendelle Elementary."

"Welcome Porter Bjorgman. My job here is to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble." Maestro Solano continued to explain the parts of the symphony and introduced several key members of the symphony. The classes were allowed to come down to the stage and meet members of the symphony before the start of the performance. "This afternoon the Arendelle Symphony will be presenting several pieces of music, some you've heard and others you haven't. The first piece will be Bach's  _Tocatta and Fugue in D Major_ , followed by Gershwin's  _Rhapsody in Blue,_ _The Firebird_ by Igor Stravinsky and we'll finish off with  _The Sorcerer's Apprentice_  by Paul Dukas."

"So basically we're hearing Disney's  _Fantasia_ without the cartoons," Kris whispered to Anna. She whacked his arm and shushed him.

"You're worse than them," Anna whispered back.

The symphony members set up and the lights went down. Anna was very impressed with her students . They all sat very still and listened to all the music politely. She had spoken to them about proper etiquette while at the theatre. After  _Rhapsody_ the symphony took a break to allow the students a chance to stretch their legs, use the restroom. Anna and Mrs. Duncan stood watch at the girl's room while Julia's dads dealt with the boys. Kris and Sven waited a distance away, staying out of the way of the others. Kris hated being a burden and at times he thought his presence on trips with Porter were more of a hinderance than a help.

"Are you okay, baby?" Anna asked, coming up to him, lightly touching his hand.

"Yeah," Kris said, lifting her hand to his lips. "This wasn't what I had in mind when I said I wanted to take you to the symphony."

"We'll go again. This time it's for Porter."

"Everything's for Porter."

Anna watched Kris during the second half of the concert. He had removed his sunglasses and was staring straight ahead, swaying to tempo. In his head he was seeing the brilliant colors that music made for him. The lifting, soaring strings were yellow to him. The rapid pounding of the percussion reds and greens. He was lost in his own world of music and color that no one else would ever be able to comprehend. His love of music was something that transcends to something more than he could ever begin to explain.

Kris was the first to stand and shout, "Bravo!" at the end of the performance. It didn't matter to him if no one else was giving a standing ovation. He would give musicians, all musicians, a standing ovation after any performance he heard. Porter joined his brother, though he didn't fully understand what all the fuss was about.

"Thank you all for coming this afternoon," Maestro Solano said, taking his bow. "I hope we have made symphony lovers out of all of you and we at the Arendelle Symphony hope to see all of you again soon."

Anna's class stood and began to file out of the theatre. Porter took Kris's hand and they walked together out to the bus. "What did you think, buddy?"

"It was all music that was on those Disney movies you and Mom would have on all the time," Porter said. "But I liked hearing it live. It was different."

"Would it be something you'd want to do again?" Kris asked.

"Maybe. If Miss Curtis comes too."

"You'd have to ask her."

* * *

"Kris, can Jake's new friend Kyle come over on Saturday?" Porter asked, Thursday evening.

"Sure the more the merrier," Kris said. "Have his parents call me if they have any concerns."

There went his evening plans with Anna. Other than this new boy's parents (whom Kris hadn't met) all of Porter's friends' parents were cool with Anna being at the house while the boys were there. Adam, Tommy, Porter were in Anna's class and Jake had been over enough for his parents to be cool with Kris having her at the house during the boys' sleepovers. Kris dug his phone out of his pocket. "Siri, call Anna."

It didn't take her long to answer the phone. "I'm on my way over right now, Kris."

"That's not why I'm calling. Porter's got another friend coming over this weekend and I haven't met the parents yet so, I don't think it would be appropriate if you came over on Saturday like we planned."

"I can just come by earlier and drop off the cookies I promised Porter I'd make," Anna said, walking out her front door. "Porter comes first."

"I don't know this kid. It's someone Jake's friends with at his new school. I'm worried about this."

"The other boys are good boys and they know and respect your rules."

"Yeah but a new kid in the mix, who knows what can happen."

"Baby, you're worrying for nothing."

* * *

"So let me get this straight," Kyle the new boy asked, after Anna left. "Your brother is dating your teacher and everyone is okay with this?"

"Miss Curtis isn't just our teacher," Porter said, coming to Anna's defense. "She's our friend."

"You can't be friends with a teacher," Kyle said.

"Well Miss Curtis is different."

The boys were quiet for a moment before digging into the pizza and wings. "So, what are we going to do tonight?" Kyle asked.

"Kris got us a movie, I have a ton of video games," Porter said.

"Yeah but, we could leave," Kyle said. "The big guy is blind. He'd never know we were gone."

Porter looked desperately to his friend Jake. Jake knew the rules. If the boys wanted to go outside at any time they had to ask Kris. They knew that and wouldn't betray Kris like that. Besides they'd never get past Sven.

"It's not a good idea," Porter said. "It's getting dark and cold."

"What are you, scared? Come on Jake. Let's get out of here."

Porter's young mind raced as he tried to come up with a solution. They could leave the TV on with the movie playing so the noise would mask their absence. If they were gone only the length of the movie, they might just get away with it. But Porter knew deep down that he couldn't betray his brother's trust. Kris trusted the boys to follow the rules he set out for them during their sleepovers. If Kris couldn't trust them, they wouldn't be allowed to have their sleepovers anymore.

"Fine," Porter said finally. "But we have to be back before the movie ends."

Kyle chuckled. "Glad to see you're seeing things my way. Let's go."

The boys put on their jackets and carefully, quietly walked up the ramps to the main floor of the house. Kris was in his room, on the phone with Anna. They opened the door and were out without disturbing the dog or having Kris hear them. They jumped on their bikes and raced down the street to the park, also avoiding Anna's house. The lights were on and the playground was empty. The boys raced around on their bikes, jumping the curbs, riding down the slides, being silly reckless boys.

* * *

Kris ended his call to Anna promising that he'll call her in the morning after the boys got up so they could have breakfast. He got up and listened for the boys. It was too quiet in the TV room. He could hear the movie but no other sounds.

"Porter? Adam? Tommy?" Silence. Porter knew better than to ignore Kris when he called. The only sounds in the room was the movie playing and the humming of the mini fridge. Panic was beginning to set in. "Porter Nicholas Bjorgman, you answer me right now! Porter!" Still no answer.

"God dammit!" Kris yelled. He whistled for Sven. "I knew that new kid was going to be trouble! Sven, phone!" The dog raced back to Kris's room and brought back his phone. "Siri, call Anna."

"Couldn't get enough of me, huh?" Anna teased, answering the phone.

"Porter and the boys snuck out," Kris said, his voice gruff and angry, two things Anna had never heard in the two months they'd been together.

"Kris, baby, calm down. They're probably just riding their bikes around the neighborhood. I'll go out and look and send them all home. Okay?"

"If you catch them, tell my brother I'm going to kill him. And then bring him back to clean up the mess and then I'm going to kill him again!"

"Kris, it'll be okay. I'm sure they're just riding around. I'll send them home."

Anna hung up with Kris and put on her coat and took the short walk over to the park. She could hear the shouting and silliness that they were having. She also saw the lights of a car going too fast in the neighborhood. She was too far away to see who was riding too close to the road. She started running as fast as she could. The squeal of the breaks and the crunch of a metal bicycle meeting the bumper of a car would forever be etched into Anna's memory. By the grace of God, the car stopped and the driver got out. He was a teenager, probably fresh from getting his license.

"I didn't see him, I swear to God. I didn't him!" the boy was crying, shaking.

"It's okay. It'll be okay," Anna said to the teenager. "You call 911 and I'll check on the rider okay?"

_Please not Porter. Please not Porter._ Her scream was heartbreaking. Kris, standing on the porch could hear it. His heart stopped. He took Sven by the collar. "Find Porter, Sven. Go find Porter." The dog and the blind man were off in the direction of the park. The swirling lights and siren of the ambulance led them both in the right direction.

Anna was standing next to Porter on the gurney when Kris and Sven arrived. She kissed the little boy's temple and pushed through the paramedics to Kris.

"Please tell me it's not…"

"He was clipped by the car," Anna said, holding his face in her hands. "His left arm and leg appear to be broken and he hit his head on the ground. They're going to take him to the hospital to get checked out."

"I'm going with them," Kris said. "Get the other boys back to their parents, bring me Sven's harness, one of my canes and change of clothes for Porter. Bring them to the hospital."

"Okay baby," Anna said, kissing his cheek. "I'm right behind you."

Kris and Sven climbed into the ambulance and Porter was loaded in right behind him. Kris took Porter's uninjured hand and held it close. "Why did you do that?"

"I'm sorry Kris," Porter cried. "I didn't want to but the others were going to anyway."

"I'm not mad at you buddy," Kris said. "You just scared me is all."

They arrived at the hospital sometime later and while Porter was taken for X-Rays and a CT a person Kris wanted absolutely nothing to do with ever again knocked on the door to Porter's ER exam room.

"We meet again, Kristoff Bjorgman," an icy voice said. "Elsa Keats, Family Services. We need to talk."

 


	8. Little and Broken

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

_Previously: They arrived at the hospital sometime later and while Porter was taken for X-Rays and a CT a person Kris wanted absolutely nothing to do with ever again knocked on the door to Porter's ER exam room._

_"We meet again, Kristoff Bjorgman," an icy voice said. "Elsa Keats, Family Services. We need to talk."_

Chapter 8: Little and Broken

"I got nothing to say to you," Kris snapped, putting his hand on Sven to keep him from growling at the social worker.

"You're brother was hit by a car. I do believe that warrants a conversation. How'd it happen?"

"I don't really know," Kris said. He hated this woman almost as much as he hated Clara. "Porter and his friends were having their weekly sleepover and they must have decided to go outside without telling me."

"So you had no idea that the boys had left the house?"

"They deliberately snuck out so I wouldn't have a chance to tell them no," Kris said. "Porter knows my rules and they chose to break them."

"So you don't have any safeguards in place to alert you to someone coming or going from your house?" Elsa asked, writing down everything he was saying.

"I assumed, incorrectly, that the boys were in the den watching a movie. This incident aside, I have never had a reason to have an alarm on the doors or windows because there's never been a need."

"Until now."

"Until now."

Elsa Keats was a tall woman with hair so blonde it was nearly white. She was known in the Family Services office as the emotionless ice queen. It was once said that she has no compassion when dealing with people that are under her case load. And sadly the matter of Kristoff and Porter Bjorgman was under her purview. Elsa played things by the book and despite her professionalism she had her own set of prejudices and sadly one of them was about people with disabilities. She was annoyed from the last time the Bjorgman boys managed to outwit her.

"This is an order of protection from Family Services to remove the minor child Porter Nicholas Bjorgman from your care until further notice."

"The fuck you are!" Kris yelled jumping to his feet. "You take that boy away from the only home he's ever known, you're going to kill what's left of his spirit. He needs to be with his family."

"It has come to the attention of Family Services that you have begun a relationship with Porter's teacher. A Miss Anna Curtis."

"What does my relationship with Anna have to do with Porter being taken from my care?" Kris argued.

"It's highly inappropriate," Elsa stated, standing there emotionless. "We believe it has to do with the behavior exhibited by Porter."

"What behavior? My brother is thriving, has friends and is doing excellent in school. I don't understand why you're launching this vendetta against my family."

"Mr. Bjorgman, there is no vendetta here. Based on several incidents, we at Family Services feel that Porter is no longer safe in your care and it is our recommendation that he be removed. Once he is released from the hospital he will be taken into Family Services care where he'll be placed with a foster family until such time as reunification can be established."

"You're a cold-hearted bitch, you know that?"

"I've been called worse, sir," Elsa said. "These are the dates of your court dates. If you miss even one, you will be limited to supervised visitation with Porter."

"You can't do this to us," Kris pleaded, reaching out to find Sven. "Please don't take my brother."

"We have no choice, Mr. Bjorgman."

"Sure you do, you could not do this."

Her phone rang just then and she stepped out of the room. "Elsa Keats, Family Services."

How was he going to tell Porter? Kris didn't know what to do. He couldn't very well sneak off with Porter because they didn't have a way home until Anna, or the Oakens came to get them. In fact Anna should have been there by now. She must have had an issue with the other boys and their parents. Kris sat back down in the chair, Sven's soft head resting on his knee, the dog whining softly. Kris's hand went to the crook in Sven's ear, his favorite spot to be scratched. His thoughts were on who could have reported to The Ice Queen about his relationship with Anna. None of Porter's friends' parents seemed to have an issue with it. In fact most them were extremely happy for him that he had someone. It wasn't the Larsons. The same for Olaf and Oaken. So who would be horrible enough to…Fawn. Fawn and possibly Clara. Why would Clara come back and do something like this? She never wanted Kris and Porter the way Anna does. Who could possibly gain from this?

His head perked up at the sound of soft feet in the quiet of the hallway. Anna. Kris had come to be able to know that it was Anna, just by the way she walked. Porter walked with pounding, thundering feet. But Anna, Anna was soft and quiet. Her scent, a mix of fresh linen laundry soap and Japanese cherry blossoms.

"Where's Porter?" Anna asked, coming into the room, setting down the duffle bag she was carrying. "I brought him his teddy bear and a change of clothes for him since I'm sure he won't want the others. I also brought you a jacket, Sven's harness and one of your many canes. Do you know that you have at least ten in the hall closet alone? I didn't think you needed that many. Would you mind one of these days if I cleaned out your closet? I mean does one really need eighty red flannel shirts? Not that mind of course. I love your red flannel shirts. They make you look so sexy. Kris? Baby, what's wrong?"

He held out his hand to her, not saying anything. Something was wrong. She could tell and it had something to do with the blonde in the hallway. Kris pulled her into his lap and held her tight to him. "Kris, baby what's wrong? Talk to me."

Beofre he could say anything, the squeaking of a wheelchair broke the silence in the room. Porter was chattering on with his nurse. He had a neon green cast on his left arm and a neon blue one on his leg. A doctor followed the nurse into the room and closed the door, but not before Elsa slipped in.

"Well we have some good news and some bad news," the doctor said. "The good news because Porter was wearing his helmet at the time of the accident, he didn't suffer a concussion. The bad news, he'll need to be in the casts for at least eight weeks and will possibly need physical therapy to help strengthen the muscles in his arm and leg after the casts come off. And what lesson did we learn, young man?"

"That riding my bike at night without wearing reflective clothing wasn't the best idea," Porter answered, picking at the cotton sticking out of the top of his leg cast.

"Excuse me, doctor," Elsa said, speaking up before Kris or Anna could. "Elsa Keats, Family Services."

"Oh yes. I've made all the medically necessary amendments to his file."

"Who the hell are you?" Anna demanded.

"Elsa Keats, Family Services. I have an order of protection to take the minor child, Porter Nicholas Bjorgman into custody immediately."

"WHAT?!" Anna exploded. She was ready for a fight. Porter was as much hers as he was Kris's. "You're not taking Porter."

"Who are you?" Elsa asked, her demeanor and voice at an even tone.

"Anna Curtis. You have no right to take a child without cause."

Elsa walked around Anna and picked up the paperwork Kris discarded because she hadn't bothered to have it printed in braille so Kris could actually read it. Anna quickly read through the papers. She had taken a class in college that helped teachers understand orders of protection and policies and procedures of Family Services. Her fight began to fade as she read. Their hands were tied until the first court appearance. There was nothing they could do right then to make this not happen. Tears stung her eyes as she looked from the woman to the little boy she loved deeply. 

"Can we at least let him get changed out of his hospital gown and say goodbye first?" Anna asked, setting the papers down. Kris remained silent in the corner his own rage and despair building to a point that if he said or did anything, he'd be arrested for assault and that wouldn't help them any. "Give us a chance to explain what's happening?"

"I'll give you a minute."

"Anna? Kris, what's going on? Why is that lady here?"

Elsa, the doctor and the nurse slipped out of the room to give them a moment. Anna knelt down and helped Porter out of his fish covered hospital gown.

"You have to go with her for a little while buddy," Kris said finally, his heart breaking. "I'm sorry."

"Why do I have to go with her?" Porter cried. "Why can't I go home? I want to go home with you and Anna!"

"I know buddy. It'll only be for a little while," Kris said, a lone tear dripping from his eye. "I promise."

For the first time, Kris was glad and thankful for his blindness. He was glad he couldn't see the pain and anguish on his little brother's face. His lower lip was trembling and the tears filling his honey brown eyes was enough to melt even the frozenest of hearts. Anna got him into his clean clothes and he clutched his bear. There was a sharp knock on the door and Elsa came back in. She gripped the handles of the wheelchair and started to push the sobbing little boy out of the room.

"NO! I DON'T WANT TO GO WITH HER! KRIS, PLEASE!" Porter screamed. "I WANT MY BROTHER! NO! KRIS!"

"A representative of Family Services will be by tomorrow to collect a single suitcase or duffle bag of neatly labeled things for the child," Elsa said to Anna and Kris over Porter's tantrum. 

* * *

Kris was standing in the kitchen while Anna was in Porter's room sewing on tidy labels to his clothes, packing them into a suitcase. The representative from Family Services was due any moment and Anna wanted to make sure Porter had everything he could need until they could get him home. Olaf and Oaken were at the kitchen table, going over the old paperwork from the last time. They had a copy of the Bjorgman's will and the statements that in the event of their passing that their oldest son was to be the guardian of the younger. Oaken was on the phone with their lawyer setting up a meeting for later that afternoon.

"Kris, Michaela can meet with us at one when she gets home from church," Oaken said. "She has to stop at the office and get her files from the last time. Is that okay?"

"Yeah, sure." Kris was a zombie. Barely speaking, barely eating. He was angry and that anger was eating him alive. He never begrudged his loss of vision, it had always been gone. But this time, this time it was keeping him from the most important person in his life. 

"At least he responded that time," Olaf said. "Kris, snap out of it. We'll have Porter home before you know it. And all this will just be a really, really bad dream."

"Thanks for your help guys," Kris said. "I think I just want to be alone for a little bit."

"Ok Kris. We'll be back later to take you to Michaela's," Oaken said. "Don't let the dark place swallow you. You were a bastard the last time."

Anna came down rolling Porter's suitcase behind her. She left it at the door and looked in the kitchen for Kris. He was standing with his back to her, lost in his own dark thoughts. He was angry. Angry at himself for not hearing the boys sneak out. Angry at Porter for going along with it. Angry at that kid for pushing them into it. Angry at the driver for not paying attention. Angry at Anna. He was just angry. He made a list of things that were going to change once he got Porter back. Every door and window will have an alarm on them. No more sleepovers with the boys at the house. The boys can't play at his house anymore. He couldn't take the risk again. He felt arms on his shoulder and he jumped turning around sharply, the back of his hand hitting something and a thump as something fell to the floor.

"Ow," Anna's soft voice said. She cradled her face in her hands, tears breaking.

"Oh Jesus! Anna, I'm so sorry. You startled me. I didn't mean it, baby. Please, Anna?" Now coupled with anger he was guilty. He'd never hurt her. Her. God Anna, his beautiful Anna. He reached for her, his arms out in the air searching for her.

Anna looked up at Kris through her tears. It was the first thing he had said to her since they got home from the hospital. She was angry and hurt. He was so dejected and closed off, nothing she said was getting through to him. She stood up and pressed herself into his chest, his warmth filling her. His big arms wrapping around her, soft words of apology whispered into her ear. 

"I should have said something. I forgot that I can't just walk up behind you," Anna said, the tears she hadn't shed over the loss of Porter, albeit temporarily, started to come. "But you can't shut me out. Please don't shut me out. I love him too, you know."

"I know you do," Kris said, resting his chin on the top of her head. "I love you."

Did he just say that? Did he just say the words she had longed to hear from him for weeks? "I love you, Anna Curtis."

"I love you too, Kristoff Bjorgman."

 


	9. The Grissoms

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 9: The Grissoms

Jayana and Walter Grissom were textbook foster parents. They followed every rule, attended every class offered for foster parents, kept logs on all of the children that passed through their home. They were the social worker's wet dream. Three and a half years ago, they were Porter's foster parents. Since they began fostering, eighty children have come through their home. Porter would make eighty-one with an asterisk. The last time Porter came to stay with them he had just lost his parents and was taken from his brother and he was angry. Three years later, they were taking in an extremely angry little boy.

Porter cried silently the entire ride from the hospital to the Grissom's home. He clutched his bear to his chest, the bear Kris bought him when he was born. He hurt, he was scared and he wanted his brother. He wanted Kris and Anna, not this person who wouldn't talk to him. Elsa hadn't said a word to Porter since she put him in the car. No comforting words that any other Family Services agent would do. She stared straight ahead focused on her GPS to get them to where they needed to be. Once they were in the Grissom's neighborhood, Elsa finally spoke to Porter.

"You remember Jayana and Walter don't you?" Elsa asked.

"No I don't," Porter answered. "Why do I have to go there? Why can't I go home with Kris? I want to go home!"

"Well, you can't go home for awhile so you're going to have to make do. The Grissom's are nice people and you'll be safe there."

"I'd be safe at home with Kris," Porter pouted.

If Elsa Keats had her way, she would recommend that Porter be removed permanently from Kris's care. There was just, to her anyway, too many risks in the home for her to recommend reunification. The child was surrounded by inappropriate things. Gay men, his guardian dating his teacher. A guardian who required more care than he could give. Unacceptable to Elsa Keats.

_What Elsa Keats, Family Services Said: "We're here. I'm going to to need you to be on your best behavior._

_What Porter Heard: If you act up, you'll have to stay here longer and you'll never get back to your brother._

Porter looked out the window to the big house on the other side of town. Flashes of being here before came back. Older kids who were mean to him, a lady who was too sweet, too nice. A quiet man. Porter wanted nothing more than to be going back to his own house, to sleep in his own bed, after reading with Kris and Anna. They were reading  _Treasure Island_. He wanted to know what was happening with Jim Hawkins and the crew.

Elsa opened the car door and helped Porter with his crutches. She carried the paperwork and his duffle bag that Anna had packed for him. Jayana met them on the porch, offering her hand to Porter.

"Porter, it's so good to have you with us," Jayana said, a big smile on her face.

"I'm tired," Porter said. "I want to go home."

"This is going to be your home for a little while," Jayana said, remembering the anger the little boy had the last time he was here. "I've got you your own room set up so you don't have to go up and down the stairs."

"Whatever. I want to call my brother. Let him know where I am."

"Oh, you can't do that Porter," Elsa said. "It's against the rules."

"I WANT MY BROTHER!" Porter screamed.

"Porter, that's enough," Elsa chided. "Let's get you settled."

* * *

"Well, at least that horrible woman gave us a week to get our case together," Michaela said, going over the court order. "Which sadly is one week too long for Porter. Karen!"

Michaela's assistant Karen came into the kitchen carrying enough papers to reprint  _War and Peace_  at least eighty times. "Well, good news, according to the last order of custody, Kris is in no violations. Bad news, we're dealing with the worst person in the history of the world."

"What can I do to help?" Anna asked.

"Can you get us copies of Porter's records before you became his teacher?" Michaela asked "Recommendations from you are not going to help the case as anything you tell the court she can twist into you protecting Kris and his interests."

"I've already arranged for a sub until this mess is over and will be transferring Porter out of my class once this is over," Anna said. "I never should have let my feelings for Kris get in the way of what's best for Porter."

Kris stood up and as quickly as he could left the dining room. He angrily stomped into the kitchen. Anna excused herself and followed Kris. "Kris? Baby?"

"I wouldn't want my feelings for you to be in the way," he said, coldly. He was facing the window, staring at nothing. "So that's it? I get Porter back but lose you to make it happen?"

"You don't get to do this. You don't get to walk out of a meeting because you don't like what you hear," Anna scolded. "If taking myself out of the equation is what it's going to take to get Porter back, then so be it. That doesn't mean I don't love you. It means that I love you and Porter enough to make sure that you're life isn't going to change more than it has to."

"This whole situation is making me crazy. You saying you're out is giving me nasty Clara flashbacks," Kris said, reaching for her hands. "You don't get to walk away. I won't make it through this without you."

"Kristoff, I still need to talk to you!" Michaela yelled from the dining room. "The longer this takes the longer Porter has to be in the system."

Anna took his elbow and led him back into the dining room. "What?"

"I need a letter, notarized, from Jillian and Jonathan Larson about your years of employment and your relationship with Porter. That woman is going to be digging deep to try and prove you're unfit to raise a child. Other than this incident with the boys sneaking out, you have no blemishes on your record. No abuse or neglect charges. I may be able to get the judge to throw everything out and make sure this never happens again."

"What about kinship adoption?" Karen asked, looking up from the state law book. "I know your parents left it in their will that you were to have guardianship, but what about adopting Porter straight out?"

Kris was quiet. They had discussed it last time but he put it off because they had gotten the court order. Maybe now it was a good idea to consider. No one would ever be able to take Porter from him ever again.

"What all do we have to do?" Kris asked.

"I took the liberty of starting the paperwork so we can introduce it to the judge Monday," Karen said. "There will have to be a home study and a few other things but because we have to deal with all bullshit just to get Porter back, it'll be one step closer."

"You two could get married," Michaela said.

"No," Kris said a bit too forcefully. "Not because of this. When I get married it's going to be a happy affair, not something thrown together because of some crisis." He reached for Anna's hand, clutching it tightly. "We'll move forward on the kinship adoption. I should have done it three years ago. I'm sure the house will pass the home study, after I get an alarm system and make sure all the doors and windows are activated."

"Olaf and I can get started on that tomorrow morning first thing," Oaken said. He stood up and grabbed his phone, calling his contractor and alarm guy. If Kris hadn't been working for the Larson's he would be on payroll for Oaken Construction.

"I have what I need to file a motion for reunification," Michaela said. "Karen will call you when we have a time. The clerk for the family court judge owes me a favor so we may get the date moved up." She noticed Kris's dejected and beaten down demeanor. "Keep your head up. I'll get Porter back. I'm prepared to file a misconduct complaint about this Elsa Keats character."

_Porter's phone calling. Porter's phone calling._  Siri's voice called from Kris's phone. He lunged for the phone and in the rush he knocked it to the floor. Anna dove for it and put Porter on speaker phone.

"Porter! Are you okay?" Anna asked.

"When do I get to come home? I want to come home," Porter said, hiding in the closet of his room at the Grissom's. He's not supposed to have his phone or even be calling Kris and Anna.

"We're working on it buddy," Kris said. "How'd you get your phone?"

"Anna hid it in my shoes and socks," Porter said. "Mrs. Grissom said that I get to come to school."

"You'll have a sub," Anna said. "I can't be your teacher right now, Porter."

"But I want you as my teacher!" Porter whined.

"You gotta keep a stiff upper lip, okay Porter. Be good and do as your told. We'll get you back as soon as we can," Kris said. "I love you buddy and I swear to God, this will never happen again."

"I love you too Kris. I promise that I'll never sneak out ever again."

"We'll talk about it when you get home, okay?"

"Porter, sweetheart, are you hungry?" Jayana called from the kitchen. "Lunch is ready!"

"I have to go. Can I call you tonight before I go to bed?"

"I don't want you to get in trouble, so how about you wait," Kris said.

"I love you, Kris. I want to come home."

"I love you too, buddy. I'll get you home. I promise."

And Kris had never once broke a promise to Porter. Never. Not once. Porter hung up his phone and hid it back in his shoes. He balanced on his crutches and joined the Grissom family in the kitchen for lunch. In that moment, Jayana and Walter had two other foster children, girls who were about Porter's age. Most of their adopted children were much older and not at home anymore so it wasn't as loud and chaotic like it was the last time Porter had to be there.

"I made ham and turkey sandwiches," Jayana said, setting down a plate in front of Porter.

"I like peanut butter and jelly," Porter said, looking at the plate with the sandwich, chips and orange slices.

"Susan's allergic to peanuts so we can't have them in the house," Jayana said. "Just eat what you like and if you're still hungry you can have a snack."

The five of them sat at the table in total silence. The silence was annoying to Porter. At home Kris always had music playing. It didn't matter what time of day it was, their house was always filled with music. With Anna there now, the music was joined with color. But here, here was quiet and boring. He wanted to go home and chase Sven around the yard. But like his brother told him, he would mind his manners, be the awesome kid that he was and get along with the other kids and hope he'd get to go home soon.

 


	10. The Hearing

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 10: The Hearing

A week later Anna awoke next to Kris with a renewed hope. It had been too quiet in a house that used to have such life to it. It broke Anna's heart to watch Kris numbly go through the motions of his morning and evening routine. If not for the carefully planned phone calls from Porter, she was sure Kris would have walked in front of a bus in order to feel anything at all. That morning they had their chance to plead their case before a judge. And unless the judge ordered otherwise, Anna was convinced that Kris would bring Porter home then and there.

They had met with Michaela and Karen almost every day to go over their case. They found out who was making the reports to Family Services. Rita Hanratty, bless her, just thought she was doing what was best for Porter and Kris, both of whom she had known for years. She did it from the right place but for the wrong reasons. Anna wished she hadn't have dismissed Rita's concerns so easily. Maybe she should have listened. Anna slid out of bed and walked over to the window and drew back the curtains. The week had been bittersweet. While she liked having Kris all to herself, she missed Porter terribly. She was used to being in a trio and the duo just didn't feel right.

"Anna?" Kris called, groggily from his side of the bed.

"By the window," Anna said. "We're getting him back today."

"We're getting him back today," Kris repeated. All week they kept positive by saying only positive things about the hearing. Because only positive thoughts would help them get Porter back where he belonged. Kris sat up and slowly walked around the bed to join Anna at the window. He too found this week to be bittersweet. He loved having Anna all to himself but he missed his brother. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her shoulder. "Thank you for being here. I wouldn't have been able to handle all this again without you."

"I love you Kris and if this whole thing costs me my job, it'll be worth it because I found the other half of my soul," Anna said.

He kissed the top of her head and proceeded to make his way to the bathroom to shower. "Join me?"

Anna didn't have to be asked twice. She slipped out of her negligée, leaving it on the edge of the bed and joined the love of her life in the steam filled shower. In the heat of the rising steam and water cascading down on them, Anna kissed Kris's chest, running her hands down the hardened muscles of his arms and chest. Without Porter, he'd been hitting the basement gym harder in the evening. In situations that he couldn't control, Kris was prone to hit the weights longer and harder as it was something he could control. His large arms wrapped around her body lifting her into the air. Anna gasped as he lifted her up. He'd never done that before.

"God, you are so light," Kris whispered, finding her lips, kissing her deeply. "Seriously, if I could manage it, I'd carry you everywhere."

Anna wrapped her legs around his toned waist, her arms around his neck. He pressed her back against the tile, his hardness pressing into her thigh. She badly wanted him to be inside her but Kris had other plans. He trails kisses down her neck around her breasts and back to her mouth. Anna did things quickly, that's how she was. Kris was slow and steady and their lovemaking reflected that at times. Bracing themselves against the wall, his free hand trailed its way down to her center and began the slow and methodical circles around her sensitive nub. Anna cried out as he helped her over the edge several times before finally slipping into her. They pant and moan together, relishing in their brief moment of bliss before returning to the real world and the issues at hand.

Anna got out first and dried off before going back into the room to lay out Kris's suit and her dress for court. She chose the only suit Kris owned, a black jacket and pants and a dark blue shirt and a contrasting tie. Kris looked great in blue and she loved seeing him in something other than his red flannel shirts. Not that she didn't love those tight fitting shirts, because they did things to her lady bits. But a suit was appropriate for court.

She had packed several dresses for herself, unsure of which one she should pick. "Baby? Should I wear the black dress or the blue one?" she asked absent-mindedly.

"Anna, you know I can't tell the difference, right," Kris answered.

Anna blushed and started to laugh. It wasn't the first time she's asked his opinion on something that Kris couldn't possibly answer and it won't be the last. She shakes her head at her own ridiculousness and stares at her selection of dresses. She decides on the black and white polka dot dress that she got from an antique store. It gave off a very June Cleaver vibe and that's what she wanted the judge to see. It required a crinoline slip for the full effect, she dug it out of her suitcase that she had been living out of for the past week. She couldn't bear to leave Kris alone in the house and he wasn't used to hers yet so it wasn't practical for him to be there. Once she was dressed she helped Kris with the buttons of his shirt and the tie.

"We're getting him back today," Kris kept repeating.

"We're getting him back today," Anna echoed.

* * *

"The Honorable Judge Carl Weselton presiding," the clerk called. "Will the parties of Family Services v. Kristoff A. Bjorgman come forward?"

Having left Sven at home, Kris used his cane and held on to Michaela's elbow as they walked to the front of the courtroom to the table on their side. Anna, Olaf, and Oaken sat behind them. Karen, Michaela's assistant followed and sat in the third chair at the table. On the other side of the aisle was Elsa Keats and the Family Services lawyer.

"Counselors, please state your names and occupations for the record please," Judge Weselton said.

"Elsa Keats, Family Services," Elsa said. She was wearing a grey pantsuit with a white blouse and grey vest. She kept a professional expression on her face, cold and ready for a fight.

"Kevin Groban, Legal Aide for Family and Social Services," the man next Elsa said.

"Michaela Potter, attorney for the defendant," Michaela said, standing.

"Karen Potter, paralegal," Karen said.

"I have gone over all the paperwork and briefs submitted by both Family Services and Miss Potter. Before I set forth a judgement, there is one person who's opinion I would like to hear. Porter Nicolas Bjorgman."

It wasn't unheard of in custody arrangements to hear from the child in question in an effort to gage their best interests. Porter carefully came forward from his seat in the back of the courtroom. Jayana made sure he had on clean clothes and had a bath, just in case he was called. In the week since the accident, he had gotten rather good at navigating with the crutches.

"Good morning young man," Judge Weselton said, once Porter was seated in the chair by the judge's bench. "Will you tell us your name and age for the court's records?"

"Porter Nicholas Bjorgman, age eight," Porter answered, smiling at his brother. It was the first time he had gotten to actually see him since being taken away.

"Mr. Bjorgman, do you know why we're all here today?"

"Because that lady over there doesn't think it's safe to live at my house," Porter said.

"And why would she think that?" Judge Weselton asked.

"Because Kris is blind but that's not his fault. That's just how he is."

"What is life like at your house, Porter?"

"Our house doesn't have stairs because they're dangerous. So we have ramps that connect each level of our house. We also don't have any sharp corners or things that can be tripped on." Judge Weselton flips through a stack of photos of the Bjorgman house that Michaela and Kris provided. "The number one rule at our house is that you have to tell Kris where you are in the house at all times."

"Tell me about your accident."

"My best friend Jake had to move to a new school this year and he made a new friend. Every Saturday, Kris lets me have my friends over for pizza, movies and video games. We've been having it since before Mommy and Dad died. Well anyway, Jake asks me on Thursday if his new friend Kyle could come over for the Saturday night sleepover. Kris said it was okay as long it was okay with Kyle's parents. They met Kris and were told about the rules."

"Is one of those rules that you boys aren't allowed outside without asking first?"

"Yes sir," Porter said looking down. "I know I shouldn't have let Kyle talk us into sneaking out. But he was going to anyway and I couldn't let him. I went along with him because I didn't know what else to do."

"That's when you got hit by the car?"

"Yes sir. I wasn't paying attention to where I was going and went off the sidewalk. The doctor said I was lucky that I was wearing my helmet."

"Porter, why do you want to stay with your brother?"

"Because he's my brother. He's all I have left in the world now that Mommy and Dad are gone. They always told me that if anything ever happened to them, they would want me to stay with Kris. Just 'cause he's blind doesn't mean he's not good at taking care of me. He makes sure I have clean clothes, sure they're folded funny but they're clean. He makes sure I have breakfast, lunch and dinner. I help him make dinner too. Uncle Olaf and Uncle Paul live down the street and they take us places that we can't get to by bus. I like the bus. Plus we have Sven and he's really cool."

"And I thought you could ramble on," Oaken whispered to Anna.

"Who's Sven?" Judge Weselton asked.

"Kris's service dog. Sven knows how to answer the phone, get the mail and even can open doors. He's a super cool dog."

"Okay Porter. Mr. Groban is going to ask you some questions now."

"Yes sir."

"Porter, how much do you have to do for your brother?"

"What do you mean?" Porter asked, looking over at Michaela.

"Do you have to do grownup things?"

"No. That's why we have Uncle Olaf and Uncle Oaken," Porter said.

"You've never had to make your own dinner or do chores that were too big for you to do?"

"No."

"Objection," Michaela said, standing up. "Does the counselor have a point?"

"Sustained. Move on."

"Porter, who is Clara Houston?"

"Clara used to date Kris," Porter said. "But she's been gone for years. We don't talk about her anymore now that Miss Curtis is here."

"Anna Curtis? Your teacher?"

"Yes. Miss Curtis is my teacher."

"And everyone is okay with that?"

"Objection!" Michaela said, standing up again. "Porter can't possibly know the minds of everyone."

"Rephrase Mr. Groban," Judge Weselton said.

"You're okay with your brother dating your teacher?" Mr. Groban asked.

"Yes I am. I like to see my brother happy and Miss Curtis makes him happy."

"But what about at school?"

"At school she's just Miss Curtis. She doesn't treat me any differently at school than she does at home. I know what my expectations are and at home she's Anna, my brother's girlfriend and at school she's Miss Curtis, my teacher."

"No further questions," Mr. Groban said.

Michaela stood up and adjusted her jacket before stepping around the table to talk to Porter. "What sort of things do you and Kris do together?"

"We take Sven for walks. Go grocery shopping with Uncle Olaf and Oaken. We listen to music and I like to draw. Even though he can't see the drawings I make, Kris still puts them on the fridge."

"Does Kris help you with your homework?" Michaela asked.

"He's not too great with spelling and reading stuff but he's great at math," Porter said beaming at his brother.

"What are some the rules you have at your house?"

"Kris doesn't care if I make a mess in my room, but all areas where he walks or is in a lot have to be picked up and free of clutter," Porter said. "Mommy taught me early that things in Kris's way could really hurt him. You have to tell him if you're next to him or behind him. He gets startled easy."

"What about when Miss Curtis is at the house? What do you do then?"

"Miss Curtis helps us make dinner and do the dishes. She and I paint and color together while Kris talks to us. We listen to music and books on tape and sometimes watch a movie. At bedtime we've been reading  _Treasure Island_. I like it when Miss Curtis reads to me. It reminds me of when Mommy was still here."

"Thank you Porter. You can go sit down now."

"I would now like to hear from the guardian in question, Kristoff Aries Bjorgman," Judge Weselton said. Kristoff stood up and tapped his way to the seat that Porter had just vacated. He sat down and clutched his cane in his hands. "Please state your name and occupation for the record, please."

"Kristoff Aries Bjorgman, I am an accountant for Larson Lumber and Construction."

Mr. Groban was the first up. "Mr. Bjorgman, on the evening of Porter's accident, what were you doing?"

"I was upstairs in the main room listening to a book, like I do most evenings."

"Did you have headphones on?"

"No. I have a speaker system that is wired throughout the house. I was using that."

"Could you adequately hear the boys in the other part of the house?"

"Yes I could."

"Then how did you miss hearing the boys sneak out of the house?"

"Have you ever been so engrossed in a good book that you forget where you are for a moment?" Kris countered. "Been so entuned to a song or task that everything else disappears?"

"Can't say that I have," Kevin Groban said.

"Then you have no idea what I'm talking about. I was listening to  _Lolita_ as read by Jeremy Irons and it was at a rather good part and I didn't hear the boys go out the garage door."

"Does that happen often?"

"Does what happen often?"

"You get so lost in a book that you forget about things around you?" Mr. Groban asked.

"Not that often when I'm at home. When I have time to myself, which is only when Porter's dead asleep, do I get a chance to listen to my books. Or during the evenings when Porter has his friends over."

"How do the parents of these boys feel about having you as the only supervision while their children are in your home?"

"I don't know. You'd have to ask them."

"Watch yourself, Mr. Groban," Judge Weselton said.

"Why didn't you have alarms in place as a safeguard?"

"Because they weren't necessary," Kris said, getting agitated. "An alarm on the doors says to Porter that I don't trust him. Trust is a big deal at our house. Porter trusts me that I have his best interests at heart and I trust Porter to accept the limitations I have and follow the very, very simple rules I have."

"What we at Family Services want to know Mr. Bjorgman, how can you possibly raise a child when you yourself need such specialized care?"

"Why doesn't Miss Keats just say it? She has had it out for me and my little brother from the beginning. She is bigoted against people with disabilities and their ability to raise children. Do you realize that I have had the same job since I was seventeen? That I worked my ass off in college to prove to prejudiced people like you that a blind kid could get his BA in accounting? I have attended every school concert, family outing that has been offered. My family and I have bent over backwards to please you people and now I have to defend my right to honor my parents dying wish?You have got to be kidding me. Porter has his own room. His own bed. He has friends, excels in school. He is kind and compassionate. Sounds to me like I'm doing a damn good job."

Applause came from the Bjorgman side of the courtroom. Judge Weselton banged his gavel and the room went quiet again. If Kris had the ability, he would see that the Family Services lawyer and the Ice Queen were beginning to shift uncomfortably in their seats. Anna looked over at Elsa Keats, Family Services, and saw her frantically write something down and slide it towards Kevin Groban.

"I'd like to discuss your relationship with Anna Curtis, Porter's teacher," Kevin said.

"What about it? That she's the best thing to ever happen to me and Porter? That she's the first teacher to get Porter interested in books that aren't  _Captain Underpants_  or  _Daredevil_ comic books? How she brings out the best in both of us?" Kris said, crossing his arms over his wide chest. "Or how about she offered to walk away from both of us if it meant Porter could come home? If that's not love, I don't know what is."

It didn't take long for both Kevin and Elsa to run out of reasons that Kris couldn't refute. He defended Olaf and Oaken. Kris was able to return to his seat after his discussion with both side of the legal teams. Both sides submitted their paperwork and Judge Weselton recused himself to his chambers to make a decision. It took him less than twenty minutes to return.

"In the matter of Family Services v. Kristoff A. Bjorgman, it is the opinion of this court that Family Services acted without merit. It is the judgement of this court that Elsa Keats placed under administrative review and the minor child Porter Nicholas Bjorgman be returned to his guardian Kristoff Aries Bjorgman. Court is adjourned."

 


	11. Ripples

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 11: Ripples

Two days. It had been two whole days since Porter was back at home. And in those two days, there were changes made. For one, Porter had a new teacher. Anna was still teaching but Porter had been moved to the other second grade class. He missed getting to be in class with his friends but they still saw each other at lunch and recess. Anna had to go before a review board to decide if she had done anything wrong by dating a parent. She hadn't but it was still prudent that Porter remain out of her class as to not give the other parents cause to cry favoritism.

About a week after Porter was home, the three of them had dinner together. Anna and Porter kicked Kris out of the kitchen so their dinner could be a surprise. "You two do realize that I don't have superpowers of smell right? Until you tell me what you're making, I'm not going to know."

"Kris, I love you, but get out," Anna said pointing to the living room.

"Just for that, I'm blasting Berlioz!"

Anna groaned. Of all the composers that she loved, she loved Berlioz the least. Anna and Porter heard the ding of Kris turing on Siri and the melodies of the dreaded composer came on. Anna shook her head and she and the little boy got back to work. They made up their own lyrics to the music being pumped into the kitchen. Anna had Porter kneading the fresh pasta dough while she mixed up the filling for the homemade ravioli they were making.

"Where did you learn to make this?" Porter asked.

"Our one housekeeper was an older Italian woman and she taught me how to make all sorts of tasty dishes. This one just happens to be my favorite."

Once the dough was rested, Anna began rolling it out flat and thin. She then took the pizza slicer and cut several squares. Porter was in charge of scooping out the filling. "Are you going to marry Kris?" Porter asked quietly.

"What was that, sweetheart?" Anna asked, having not heard him over Kris turning up the music, to make sure they knew he was still sore about being kicked out of the kitchen.

"Are you going to marry my brother? Are we going to be a family?" Porter asked again.

"I don't know the answer to that, Porter," Anna said, kneeling down in front of the boy. "I love your brother very much. Almost as much as I love you. But I don't have to marry him for the three of us to be a family."

"Cause I really want you to," Porter said.

Anna wrapped her arms around the boy, hugging him tightly. "I really want to, too."

Once dinner was plated and they were eating, Kris broached a subject they hadn't really talked about since he got home. The reestablishing of the trust between the two brothers.

"Porter, we have some things to talk about," Kris said, setting his fork down. "That wasn't a fun week was it?"

"Not at all," Porter said. "The Grissom's were nice and all but they were too nice. Like they were trying too hard."

"Some people are just like that," Anna said. "But Porter we need to talk about cause and effect."

"Like ripples?"

"Like ripples," Kris said. "What you boys did, not only caused things to happen here but at school, my work and at your friends houses."

"I can't be your teacher anymore," Anna said. "I nearly lost my job but that is because of my relationship with Kris."

"Which wouldn't have happened if I hadn't been in your class," Porter said, looking down, tears welling up in his eyes.

"Porter, we're not angry at you but what your actions caused," Anna said, reaching for his hand.

"Dude, you  _knew_  better," Kris said. "You knew better than to sneak out and yet you did. Explain it to me."

"I didn't want to," Porter said, looking up at his brother. "I wanted to stay inside and watch movies and play video games. I didn't want to sneak out. But they were going to anyway and I didn't want them to think I was a dweeb or a baby."

"Staying inside and following the rules doesn't make you a dweeb or a baby. It makes you responsible," Kris said. "Now, I know being taken and having to live with strangers for a week was punishment enough, but I gotta change the rules around here, dude."

"I understand," Porter said.

"Starting now and until the foreseeable future, no more sleepovers. I can't trust that you guys won't try something like this again."

Porter nodded and agreed. They ate in silence again.

* * *

Once they were alone in his room, Kris held Anna close to him, her head resting on his bare chest. Kris expected some resistance from Porter about the loss of the sleepovers and having his friends over. But like everything that happened with Porter, he was taking it rather well.

"I'm worried about Porter," Kris said.

"I think he's okay," Anna said, kissing his chest.

"When Moms and Dad died, Porter was inconsolable. He cried for days. Took everything we had to get him back. This should be as devastating."

"Maybe you're underestimating him," Anna said, crawling on top of him. "Porter is a great kid and I think he's going to be just fine."

Anna loved making love to Kris. Her former lovers in college had been selfish and usually left her unfulfilled. But not Kris. Kris made love to her slowly, methodically. His hands trace her body, finding every nook and crevice. Touch was very important to Kris and it was his way to see her. She loved lying under him, watching him kiss up and down her body, taking her nipples in his mouth. She pushed his hair out of his face, reminding herself to give him a trim in the morning.

"I love you, Kris," Anna whispered. "I want to be with you forever."

"I do too," Kris whispered back.

 


	12. The Larson Company Christmas Party

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 12: The Larson Company Christmas Party

Kris sat on the edge of his bed holding a small burgundy box. Inside the box contained the ring he wanted to give Anna. He wanted to give her his mother's ring but he had already proposed to Clara with it and the bad juju that came with that made it hard for him to figure out what to do instead. He couldn't ask Anna because he wanted his and Porter's proposal to be a surprise. Olaf and Oaken, while great guys, didn't have the first clue about what a girl would want. That left him only one person. Jillian Larson, his boss' wife.

"Hey Jillian, can I ask you something?" Kris asked, when his boss came into his office to check on him after lunch.

"What's on your mind, Kris?" Jillian said, pulling up a chair.

"I'm going to ask Anna to marry me," Kris said.

"Oh sweetheart, that's wonderful."

"Porter and I have it all planned but there's only one snag in the plan."

"And what's that?"

"I want to propose with Mom's ring but I did that before with Clara and I don't want to jinx our relationship by regifting Mom's ring."

Jillian was quiet for a moment. She remembered Clara and what she remembered about the girl wasn't anything good. She was selfish and condescending to just about everyone she met. Jillian, while sad for Kris's broken heart, was glad to see the girl go. Even more so after Jillian found out what Clara had said about Porter. "Kris, I knew your mom and I loved her. I think she would be proud to have Anna wear her ring. Clara was a nice girl but she wasn't the one. You don't give a family heirloom to not the one. Do you love Anna?"

"You know I do. More than anyone. She's all I've ever wanted."

"What about Porter? I was there the day after you broke up with Clara. I remember what she said about Porter."

"She wants to adopt him."

"Then I think you have your answer, then Kris."

* * *

One afternoon Kris and Porter went to Macy's and bought themselves new suits. Kris's was a dark navy complete with a burgundy tie and matching navy vest. For Porter he got a matching one in black. His tie was also red. They had the tailor at Macy's keep the ties tied so that Kris wouldn't have to try to redo the knots when he got home. On the way home from the store, Kris called the Arendelle Symphony's box office and confirmed that he had three tickets to the New Year's Eve performance of Beethoven's Ninth Symphony, Anna's absolute favorite. From there everything was in place. Now all they had to do was prepare for the Larson Lumber and Construction's annual Christmas party.

Every year Jonathan and Jillian Larson rent out the ballroom of the Arendelle Grand Hotel. They cater a fancy dinner, hire a big band for dancing and live music, and in the adjacent room, a giant bouncy castle and projection TVs for video games and movies for the children of the company. Every year since he was seventeen, when he was first an intern for Larson Lumber Kris enjoyed attending the party.

For the first time since they began dating, Kris and Porter walked down the block to Anna's house. Anna worked the last week to make sure she cleared any and all obstacles from the main pathways of her house. She was nervous but honestly had no reason to be. The door bell rang and she smiled, excited to have her boys over for the first time.

"Hey guys, come on in," Anna said, opening the front door. Porter was the first in. She took Kris's arm and led him into the house. "I've got a surprise for you. My parents finally finished sending me all my stuff from their house." She led the boys into the living room. She held her finger to her lips when Porter's eyes lit up at the sight of the harp in the corner of her living room.

She sat down in her chair, adjusting herself and the harp before beginning to play. The music was soft and inviting. "Baby are you playing a CD?" Kris asked, his head turning towards the music.

"Not exactly," Anna said. The music changed to a jovial, spring like sound. "This called  _Kris and Porter_."

"You wrote a piece for the harp?" Kris asked, recognizing the music, a big smile on his face. "For us?"

"Do you like it?"

"You wrote us a song!" Kris said with a huge grin. He stood up from the couch of, following the sound of the harp he felt his way across the strings to her hands and traced his hands along her arms and up to her face. Cradling her face in his hands, he kissed the top of her head, her forehead before finally finding her lips and kissing her deeply. "I love it."

Porter feeling left out of the love, crashed into his brother's legs, wiggling his way in between them. "Can you teach me to play the harp, Momma? Please?"

"What did you just say, Porter?" Kris asked, shocked. "What did you call Anna?"

"Isn't that okay?"

"Oh Porter, it's perfect," Anna said, kneeling down wrapping her arms around the little boy. "We'll start your musical education with the piano, does that sound okay?"

"Yeah it does, Momma."

* * *

Porter took great pride in introducing Anna as his new Momma to all the kids at the Christmas party. His declaration caused several people to raise their eyebrows at the young couple. Kris played it off fantastically, explaining that for the first time since their parents had died, Porter had a positive female presence in his life and it didn't bother them at all. Kris and Anna made small talk with the other guests and was finally introduced to Jonathan and Jillian Larson.

"Jon, Jillian, this is my girlfriend Anna," Kris said.

"Anna, it is so nice to finally meet you," Jillian said. "You've got the best of the bunch right here."

"I think so, too." Anna wrapped her arm around Kris's waist, resting her cheek on his arms. "I can't imagine my life without him and Porter."

"Well they do come as a set," Jonathan said.

"That they do. And I wouldn't have them any other way."

A chime rang to alert the partygoers that dinner was served. Anna helped Kris to the table, with that many people in the room it was just easier for him to swallow his pride and let Anna guide him to their table. He put his fingers to his lips and let out a shrill whistle. A new thing to get Porter's attention.

"What's for dinner this year?" Kris asked Anna.

"Prime rib with twice baked potatoes and bacon wrapped asparagus," Anna read from the menu. "Or chicken carbonara with porchini mushrooms, applewood bacon, penne pasta and fresh alfredo sauce."

"What's on the kids' menu?" Kris teased.

"Chicken fingers, fries, peas and orange slices," Anna answered, punching him in the shoulder. "Or spaghetti and meatballs."

"Momma, can I have the spaghetti and meatballs?" Porter asked, looking very small in his seat.

"Why you asking her?" Kris asked. "I'm the legal parent here."

"But you'll make me eat the vegetables."

"Porter, there are vegetables in the spaghetti sauce."

"But they're in sauce form so it doesn't count."

"Whatever you say dude."

The waiters come by and take the orders. The band starts up, playing somewhat decent (to our resident music snobs) background music. They make polite conversation with the others at the table, many of whom Kris doesn't know because they are part of the work crew and don't come into the office all that often. They know who Kris is though because he's the one makes sure they all get paid.

"Dance with me?" Anna asked, taking his hand once the dinner plates were taken and Porter was off with the other kids in the other room.

"Anna. No, not here," Kris said, her nerves getting the best of him.

"Kris, it's just me. Nobody's looking at you but me," Anna said, pulling on his arm. "Please baby?"

"I'll try not to step on your feet."

The band began to play  _The Way You Look Tonight_. Anna carefully led Kris onto the dance floor, keeping to their own private corner, to be out of the way of the other dancers. She wrapped her arms around his neck, looking up at him and his blank stare. She guided his hands to her waist and he encircled her, holding her close to him. They pressed their foreheads together. "I love you, Anna."

"I love you, Kris. More than anything we'll ever come up against."

* * *

It took a lot of convincing like it always does to get Porter out of the game room. They came back to Anna's house and built a blanket nest on the floor and watched a movie. It took all of ten minutes before Porter was conked out on the floor and Anna and Kris were lying together on the couch, his large frame taking up a good majority of it while Anna curled into his side, his hand resting lovingly on her lower belly.

"Kristoff, I need to tell you something and I need you to not freak out on me okay."

"What's wrong Anna?"

"I'm pregnant. I wanted to wait to tell you on Christmas, but I need you know now." He was silent for far too long. Anna was terrified that she had scared him. "Kris, honey, talk to me."

"When? How? We've been…"

"I think it was the morning we got Porter back," Anna said, staring at the little boy on the floor. "We weren't exactly careful."

"As long as I have you, this is the best news I could get."

 


	13. The New Year's Eve Concert

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 13: New Year's Eve Concert

New Year's Eve. The day Kris was going to propose to Anna. But now he wasn't sure if he should. What if she thinks he's only proposing because she's pregnant? But on the other hand he was planning on proposing way before he found out about the baby. He was still nervous and unsure if he should follow through with the plan. At least take her to the symphony like they planned. The proposal however, he would jump off that bridge when he got to it. If he got to it.

Kris and Anna hadn't told Porter about the baby yet. They were unsure of how to tell him. How would they explain it to him? Kris laid awake the night Anna told him trying to figure out a way to make it not sound like A) a backwoods hick or B) A VC Andrews novel. Again something they'll figure out when the time was right. Anna and Porter were at the store to get things for "dinner" since she didn't know about the concert. He had put the tickets in the desk drawer in the kitchen. He heard the door open and the delicate footsteps that belonged to Anna and the pounding ruckus that was Porter. He whistled for Sven and held onto the dog's collar and walked into the kitchen.

"I didn't know what you'd be hungry for tonight so I just got a little of everything," Anna said, turning to face Kris. "I figured we could have something simple. Then Porter thought we could make our own English muffin pizzas and we kinda went a bit overboard."

Grocery bags were up turned and spilling over the counter with seven different kinds of cheese, pepperoni, sausage, tomato sauces, alfredo sauces, chicken, bacon and even, gasp, vegetables. Kris felt along the counter and laughed. "Did you leave anything for anyone else?"

"I thought we could make this a new Bjorgman-Curtis New Year's Eve family tradition," Anna said. "Homemade mini pizzas and something else. I'm not sure of what else though. It doesn't snow enough here to have a snowball fight or even to build snowmen. No use in going downtown for the shows and events since we all can't enjoy them. I thought about the symphony but by the time I called there weren't any more tickets available."

"What would you say if Port and I told you we have tickets to the symphony tonight for the Beethoven performance?" Kris asked, feeling along behind him for the drawer where the tickets were.

"I'd say you're getting my hopes up for nothing," Anna said, her back to Kris as she puts away the meats and cheeses for the pizzas.

He pulled open the drawer and located the envelope and quickly passed them to Porter, giving the boy a smile. "Happy New Year baby," Kris said, as Porter handed her the envelope. "Three seats, mid orchestra level right behind the conductor. Porter picked them out."

"You both are so full of surprises," Anna smiled. She kissed the top of Porter's head and cupped Kris's cheek, kissing him. "So I guess mini pizzas are out?"

"We do have reservations at the Grand for dinner," Kris said.

"Is there anything else happening tonight that I need to be aware of?" Anna asked.

"Nope. Not a thing," Kris said grinning in his girlfriend's general direction. If he could wink at Porter he would do so.

* * *

Dinner at the hotel was almost as good as the one they had a week or so ago at the Christmas party. Porter was the youngest person at the New Year's Eve dinner. After losing Porter for that week, Anna and Kris rarely had dates by themselves. Not that they were afraid of Family Services, but because they were a family and they wanted to do things together. Porter felt very grown up in his suit and tie and ordering off the grownup menu. It was mac and cheese made with several fancy cheeses and he even ate the side of asparagus without complaint.

The ring was burning a hole in Kris's inside jacket pocket. He wanted to reach into his pocket and drop down to one knee right then and there but that would ruin the rest of the plan. He and Porter had been working very hard to make sure that this was going to be an evening that Anna would never forget as long as they were together.

They ordered dessert, a first. Usually Kris didn't want to pay the outrageous prices of the hotel's dessert selections but it was a special occasion. Porter got a sundae, Anna the caramel cheesecake and Kris the apple pie with ice cream. From the hotel to the opera house where the symphony performs was a short walk so instead of taking the car out of the garage and repaying to park, the little family chose to walk. Anna in the center of her boys, arm looped through Kris's and her hand held tightly by Porter. The snow that the weather guy had been predicting all week was starting to fall.

"It's snowing, Kris!" Porter exclaimed.

He stopped for a moment and lifted his face up letting the white flakes cover him. Anna ruffled the snow out of his hair before walking into the opera house. Porter hands the tickets to the usher and the older gentlemen asks if he can escort them to their seats. Once they find their seats, Porter and Anna retreat to the restroom leaving Kris by himself. He takes his phone out of his pocket and makes a quick phone call.

"Marie Claire Hampstead? This is Kristoff Bjorgman. I spoke to you last week. Yes we're here. She has no idea what's going to happen. She's going to be so excited. The light guys are in on this too? That's great. This is going to be the best proposal in the history of proposals." He heard a distinct whistle and quickly ended the call before Porter and Anna came back.

The lights dimmed and the stage lights came up and the conductor stood on his platform and took a bow while the members of the symphony took their seats. Porter grinned the whole time, sitting between Anna and Kris. Somewhere about thirty minutes into the concert his little head lolled to the side and rest on his brother's shoulder, snoring lightly.

"He's so cute. We should just take him home," Anna whispered to Kris.

"He's okay. It's just a cat nap," Kris said, dropping his arm over his brother, holding his out for Anna. "Let's just enjoy the music."

Anna's favorite thing to do was to watch Kris listen to music. His head sways back and forth with the beat. His hand follows the tempo with his hand. He lifts his hand as the music crescendos and lowers as it softens. Music and his brother were the best things about him. Now she felt like she was a part of that.

Once the concert was over an usher escorted them down to the stage. Anna was confused as to what was happening. "Kris what's going on?"

"I got you a meeting with Marie Claire Hampstead," Kris said.

"No way! This is awesome! Oh, Kris, this is perfect. Thank you."

Marie Claire Hampstead came out to greet them. "Hello everyone, my name is Marie Claire Hampstead. I am so pleased to meet you."

"You were wonderful this evening Miss Hampstead," Anna said, shaking her hand. "I loved it."

"Your gentlemen have told me so much about you," Miss Hampstead said. "They said you were an excellent harpist. I've been looking for a second chair to take over the chamber concerts at the Arendelle Grand and during their high teas. Think of this as an audition."

Anna kissed Kris on the cheek, ruffled Porter's hair and climbed up the steps of the stage and followed Miss Hampstead over to the harp. She sat down adjusting the chair and soon began to play the song she wrote for Kris and Porter. The house lights went down and a soft yellow spotlight shone on Anna, blinding Anna from all other activity. She played her to her best letting the music wash over her. When the song was completed and the lights came up on a sight that made Anna's breath catch.

Kris was backlight with a pink spotlight, he was down on one knee. Porter standing next to him with a small box in his hand. "Momma! Momma!" Porter exclaimed, trying to contain the happy energy filling him.

"Porter? Kristoff? What's going on?"

"Anna Amelia Curtis, you are the most wonderful woman, I have ever had the pleasure of knowing," Kris said. "You started out my little brother's teacher and soon became the best thing in our lives. When I say I love you more, I don't mean I love you more than you love me. I love you more than petty fights. I love you more than misunderstandings. I love you more than any obstacle that comes in our way. Anna Amelia Curtis, Porter and I have a question we want to ask you."

"Momma Anna, thank you for reading to me and helping me like school. Thank you for teaching me how to play the piano. Will you be my Momma forever?"

"Oh Porter!" Anna breathed, kneeling down and wrapping the little boy in her arms. "Porter, I will always be your Momma. Of course." He held out the little box and Anna opened it to find a heart shaped locket. Inside was a small photo of Anna and Porter together. "Porter it's perfect. Thank you. Will you help me put it on?"

Porter took her hand and placed in Kris's outstretched hand. "Anna Amelia Curtis, will you wear this ring and promise that you will love me more? Marry me?"

"Kristoff Aries Bjorgman, I will. YES!"

 


	14. Agdar and Indun Curtis: AKA Anna's Parents

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 14: Agdar and Indun Curtis AKA: Anna's Parents

Kris and Anna made love that night in a way they never had before. Anna lay under Kris as he trailed kisses down her neck, between her breasts, down her belly and dreaming of the day when he would do this over the bump housing his child, growing inside her. He gently rubbed her pleasure nub, listening to Anna breathe heavily.

"Yes my love, that's it," Kris encouraged. "You are so perfect."

"Please Kris. I need you," Anna gasped, arching her back. "Please I need you."

"I don't want to hurt you or the baby," Kris said, feeling his way back to her face.

"You're not going to hurt the baby, please Kris. I want to make love to my fiancé." Anna guided his face back to hers and kissed him deeply. "I love you." Her legs parted for him and she took his throbbing member in her hand, guiding it to her center. "Fill me, my love."

They came together, holding each other tight. Sitting up Kris held Anna in his lap as she rode him. He held her close to him, his head between her breasts, listening to her heart beat. He loved how she allowed him the chance to memorize her body, find the places that made her tick. He would never grow tired of her, never want anyone else. Anna was his and his she'll stay.

"So how are we going to tell Porter about the baby?" Anna asked, curled into Kris's side, her head resting on his broad chest.

"Sooner rather than later," Kris said. "Probably in the morning would be the best. I don't know how he'll take it."

"I think you don't give him enough credit," Anna said. "Porter has handled everything we've thrown at him with great poise and understanding. I think he'll be excited about being a big brother." Kris took a breath to begin saying something but Anna put her fingers to his lips. "And before you over analyze this and turn it into a VC Andrews novel, we'll consider the baby Porter's little brother or sister and no one needs to dig deeper."

"I want a little girl," Kris said, tightening his embrace of Anna. "A little girl just like you."

What Kris wasn't saying was the fear he had that his child would be blind. While he could handle himself and the disability but he couldn't saddle Anna with raising a special needs child. Until they knew for sure, he planned to keep his fears to himself.

* * *

"Ding dong! Anna? Darling? Are you home?" a cheery, high voice called opening the front door of Anna's house. Porter was on the floor still in his customized  _Daredevil_ PJs, complete with foot coverings, with his cereal and cartoons while Anna and Kris were in the kitchen making a more sophisticated breakfast of poached eggs, fresh toast and jam. "Who are you?" the woman asked Porter.

"Porter Bjorgman," he said. "Who are you?" The lady looked like Anna, except for the darker hair. She had a kind face, much like Anna's. Dressed to the nines, the lady looked down at Porter half confused, half disgusted.

"Mrs. Curtis, Anna's mother."

"Momma!" Porter yelled. "Momma!"

"Porter we've talked about this," Anna said, coming out of the kitchen to check on Porter. "No yelling unless it's an emer- Mother."

"Anna, do you have something you need to tell us about?" Indun Curtis asked, pointing to Porter.

"What are you doing here?" Anna asked.

"That's no way to greet your mother," Indun said. "Who is that?" She pointed at Porter with her long, professionally manicured nails.

"That's my son, Porter," Anna said.

"Explain."

"Kris, baby, can you come into the living room?" Anna called. Kris tapped his way through the kitchen into the living room, using muscle memory and the sounds of Porter's cartoons to guide him. Sven was eight houses down and three over, probably enjoying the peace and quiet. Anna took his hand and held it tight. She wasn't ashamed of her mother but there were times when Indun Curtis could be quite the insufferable snob. "Mother, this is my fiancé Kristoff Bjorgman. And you've already met his little brother Porter."

"Pleased to meet you, Mrs. Curtis," Kris said, holding out his free hand, the white cane hanging in front of him.

"He's blind, Anna."

"Really, Mother? I wasn't aware of that," Anna said, glaring at the woman. Her eyes lowered and giving her mother that  _Be nice_ stare.

"It's okay, Anna. I have been blind since I was a baby. We don't really know what caused it," Kris said, getting the next question out of the way early. It always amazed Anna how nosy people can be about Kris's disability.

"You are marrying your son's brother? Anna, I am very confused."

"My parents died three years ago and I have guardianship of Porter," Kris said. "The kinship adoption papers are in the process of being filed and once they are we will be adding Anna's name as the adoptive mother. Once we're married of course."

"How long have you been together? You just moved here," Mrs. Curtis said.

"Since September," Anna said.

"Four months?! Anna Amelia Curtis, you can't marry someone you've only known for four months!" Mrs. Curtis shouts.

"Hey Port, why don't you go get ready for ice skating with Adam and Tommy," Anna said. "Just leave your bowl in the kitchen."

She waited until Porter was out of earshot before she responded to her mother. "I am twenty-three years old. If I want to marry someone I met  _yesterday_  I will. You don't have any right to tell me what I can't do anymore. I love Kris and that little boy more than I ever thought possible."

"Mrs. Curtis I know it seems sudden, but with everything that has gone on the past few months, I want Anna with me forever. She is the best thing in my world and I will fight for her for the rest of my life."

Indun Curtis wasn't convinced. If Kris could see, the look on the woman's was of utter disgust. How dare her daughter saddle herself to a man with a severe disability and a child nonetheless. This must be put to an end.

"Anna, I would like you to come have lunch with your father and I today," Indun said. "Alone."

"I'm sorry Mother," Anna said, looping her arm around Kris's waist. "I have a family now. Where I go, they go."

"Anna, it's fine," Kris said, gripping her elbow. "I'll just stay home while Porter goes skating with his friends. Besides, Sven has been feeling a bit neglected since we have been over here the past three nights."

"Who is Sven?"

"My guide dog."

Kris had a feeling that Mrs. Curtis was never going to like him. And as long as her mistrust and snobbery didn't rub off on Anna, he would be okay with his future mother in law hating him. He felt Anna's head rest on his chest and the front door open and then close. Anna sighed and held him tight.

"And that's the reason I live so far away from her," Anna said. "Come on. Let's go tell Porter the actual good news."

Anna helped Kris manage the stairs of her house, going up to the second bedroom that Anna gave to Porter when the boys spend the night. He's already made it his own by taping up posters and schoolwork on the wall. His giant Daredevil decal that Anna bought him for Christmas, stuck to the door.

"Hey buddy, Anna and I need to talk to you about something," Kris said, lowering himself to the floor. Anna joined him and opened her arms to the little boy and he sat down in her lap.

"What's wrong?" Porter asked. "Momma, did you change your mind about marrying us?"

"Never, baby," Anna said, kissing the top of his head. "This isn't bad news. It's very, very good news."

"Anna's going to have a baby," Kris said. He wished he could see the reaction on his little brother's face. "You're going to get to have a little brother or sister."

"Well, I already have a brother," Porter said. "Can I have a sister?"

"It doesn't work that way but we'll have to wait and see," Anna said, squeezing Kris's hand. What were they worried about? Porter was fine with it. Just like he was fine with Kris and Anna in the beginning. This kid was forever surprising the pair.

* * *

"I have warned your mother to be on her best behavior," Agdar Curtis said, greeting Anna and her boys in the lobby of the hotel. "I am so happy you've found yourself a family. Your mother and I weren't always the best but we did our best with you."

"Thank you for that Daddy," Anna said, hugging her father tight.

"I am very pleased to meet you Mr. Bjorgman," Agdar said, shaking his hand. "And you too, young Mr. Bjorgman." In comparison to Indun, Agdar was jolly and nice. He didn't look at Kris and Porter like they were in the process of ruining his daughter's life. In fact he was very happy that his daughter had found someone to love and share her life with. Granted it was in a very unconventional way. Having had enough of the fancy food of the hotel the last few weeks, Anna and Kris requested they go somewhere a bit more family friendly. Agdar agreed and they ended up at Chuck E. Cheese's.

"Momma? How many tokens can I have today?" Porter asked.

"Oh bud, we don't have a lot of cash today. So you only get the ones that come with the meal option," Kris said. He and Anna went a bit overboard with Christmas and Kris was cash strapped until the building season kicked back up.

"I got you, little man," Agdar said, handing Porter a crisp twenty. Anna started to protest, wanting to teach Porter to budget and live with what he's got and not always expect more. "Anna, he is my soon to be grandson. I get to spoil him."

"Daddy, we're trying to teach Porter that when we tell him no or not now, we mean it," Anna said, looking at Porter's smile slowly start to fade away as he starts to give back the money to his soon-to-be grandpa.

"Anna, let him have his fun," Kris said. "He can learn that lesson next time."

"Thanks Kris!" Porter wrapped his arms around his brother's waist and ran off in the direction of the games and rides.

"So tell me more about you," Agdar said, sitting down at the table with his daughter and his future son-in-law. He already adored the boy and couldn't wait for them all to be in his life forever.

"I've been blind since birth, but we have no idea what caused it. My mother never wanted to make it seem like there was something broken," Kris said. "Doctors for years would try to get my parents to try different therapies or even transplants to regain my sight but nothing worked. They finally had enough and now the only doctor I see is Porter's."

"How did you end up meeting?"

"I was Porter's teacher," Anna said, wrapping her hand around Kris's. "I knew I wanted to be a part of his life from the moment I saw him."

"I'm sorry your mother couldn't be here," Agdar said. "She's having trouble accepting this."

"Then that's her loss. Because I am so happy Daddy."

"I know I haven't been there for you enough, Anna and I want to make sure you and your new family have everything that you need. From the wedding to babies."

"Yeah, Daddy about that," Anna said, squeezing Kris's hand. "The baby part is closer than you think."

Agdar's smile was huge and he hugged his daughter. "This makes me so happy."

 


	15. Anna's First Concert

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 15: Anna's First Concert

After the review by the school board, Anna decided that she would rather be a music teacher of her own making then be under the strict rules and regulations of a school district. She was paid out the rest of her contract and she, with the help of Olaf and Oaken packed up her small house and she moved in with Kris and Porter. She contacted Marie Claire at the symphony and got the dates from her about the needs of the second chair harpist and began doing that while gaining students for her music lessons. The fourth bedroom in the house was converted into a music room while the third was going to be the new baby's room.

Anna and Kris had an appointment with her doctor to have an ultrasound and hopefully hear the baby's heartbeat. They sit in the waiting room of the OB's office. Kris was nervous. He hadn't voiced his concerns about the baby and any vision issues he may possibly pass down. What if the baby was blind too? He couldn't bear to do that to Anna and Porter. Why hadn't they been more careful. He would never, ever tell Anna that he was having doubts about their baby. It would break her heart and that was a pain, Kris knew he wouldn't be able to endure. He loved her more than he thought possible and would never intentionally hurt her. And his doubts about the baby would surely drive her away. Instead he began to focus on her debut at the symphony on Friday. Miss Hampstead had been invited to perform with the Philadelphia Philharmonic and would be away for at least eight performances with the Arendelle Symphony. Anna, as the new second chair harpist, would take over. She was so excited when she returned from the rehearsal three days beforehand.

_"Guess what boys?" Anna called._

_"What is it Momma?" Porter asked, crashing into her for his hug._

_"Marie Claire has to go to Philadelphia for a few weeks so I will be taking over her seat at the symphony."_

_"Do we get to come too, Momma?"_

_"Of course. I have to have my boys there or I won't enjoy it," Anna said._

"Anna Curtis?" a nurse called. Anna tapped Kris's arm and led him through the waiting room. The nurse to Kris and Anna back to a waiting room and Anna sat down on the exam table and waited for the ultrasound tech to come in.

"Kris, you have been really quiet today," Anna said, holding his hand. "Talk to me?"

"What if the baby's blind?" Kris said, quietly. "What if what caused my blindness is genetic?"

"Then she'll have the best teacher ever," Anna said.

"She?" Kris said with a smile.

"I am outnumbered completely," Anna said. "Olaf, Oaken, you, Porter, and even Sven. I need some backup."

"I had a dream that the baby was a girl too," Kris said, holding Anna's hand. "Baby, I can't be the dad I want to be to our baby. I won't be able to hold her, take care of her. It's all going to be on you."

"Kristoff Aries Bjorgman," Anna said, gripping his chin in her hand. "You listen to me right now. Our child is the luckiest child in the world. They are going to have the best upbringing we can give them. You aren't going to be an absent dad. You're not going to want to travel all over the world and miss their high school and college graduation. You are going to be there to witness everything our child will ever do. From piano lessons to little league. They will know you love them so much. Don't ever doubt yourself as a father. Believe me, you as a father, is my favorite thing about you."

Kris traced his fingers over the love of his life's face. "I won't promise that my doubts won't be silenced, but I can promise that I won't let them overtake me."

The door opened and the ultrasound technician came in with a big smile on her face. "I was told to make sure that the volume is up so that daddy can hear the heartbeat better."

"Yes thank you," Anna said, squeezing Kris's hand. "My fiancé is blind, this is his way to see our baby."

"All right. Now this is just a scan to find the heartbeat and establish a more accurate due date," the tech said. She ran the wand over Anna's belly and tapped on the keyboard and the image appeared on the screen. Anna turned her head to look at the screen. The grainy grey and white image of the ultrasound and the pea pod, their pea pod.

"Kris, she's so little," Anna gasped. "She can't be bigger than a pair of peas."

"Baby is less than an inch long," the tech said. "I would say you're due in late August, early September."

"So much for a late summer wedding," Anna laughed. "Kris, baby do you hear that?"

The room went silent except for a small  _thump-thump_ sound coming from the speaker of the ultrasound machine. "What is that?" Kris asked, leaning forward.

"That, Mr. Bjorgman, is your baby's heartbeat," the tech said.

"Oh my God," he whispered, a lone tear rolling down his cheek. The room fell silent for a very long time as the big man slid large tears down his cheek as he heard his child's heartbeat. Anna held up her phone and recorded the whole experience. She always would make sure that their child would know how much she was loved even from the very beginning. Their child would know that even though her father couldn't see her, he held her in a such a special place in his heart that nothing would ever take that place.

* * *

"Momma! You look so pretty!" Porter said when Anna came down the ramp from her and Kris's room, wearing the black and white satin dress and jacket required for the musicians of the Arendelle Symphony. She had her red hair pulled up in a fancy French twist held in place with a jeweled butterfly comb that Porter bought her for Christmas.

"Oh thank you, buddy," Anna said, accepting a hug from her little man. Her big man was holding a large bouquet of red roses standing by the door. Both of her boys were in the same suits they wore to the New Year's Eve concert. It was the only suit they owned. Anna would have to look into getting them a few others. Especially if she was going to be performing with the symphony more often. "Everyone ready?"

"You're not driving yourself to your first performance with the symphony, Anna," Kris said, opening the door. A white stretch limo was parked out front. "A gift from Olaf and Oaken. Since they had to be out of town for this."

"Oh! This is, this is, just wonderful. Thank you!" She put on her peacoat and the three of them walked down the snow covered walkway and the driver met them and helped Anna into the car. It was the first time in his and Porter's life that they were riding in a limo. Anna had been in several because of the parties and things her parents used to drag her to when they were around. In fact her parents were supposed to be there for her first performance. But Anna wasn't holding her breath. Her father would be there, he mother a different story all together. Her mother still refused to speak to her after finding out about Kris, Porter, the engagement, adoption and now the new baby. Her father on the other hand was over the moon. He showered them with gifts and money, all of which Anna tried to give back. Porter had a bike, he didn't need a new one. She didn't need a new car. The Camry was perfect for her little family. But there were some things that even Anna couldn't say no to. And that was the offer to completely pay for everything for their wedding, right down to a nanny to bring along on their honeymoon so Porter wouldn't have to stay home.

Anna hadn't even thought of what she wanted her wedding to be. None of the usual things seemed to matter. Kris wouldn't care what her dress looked like. Or the flowers, decorations or even his own tux. Photos were pointless except to her and Porter. She didn't even know what he wanted. Could they just go to the justice of the peace and get it over with? Or did he want a big fancy affair at the Arendelle Grand Hotel? So many things they needed to talk about but hadn't found the time. Between the baby, her mother's less than stellar introduction and now the symphony, time was not on their side. She wanted to be married and be Mrs. Kristoff Aries Bjorgman before their child arrived in the world. She wanted to be Mrs. Kristoff Aries Bjorgman since the day she met him.

The limo dropped them off in front of the opera house and they entered the building. Anna had to go down to the orchestra pit to meet with the other members of the symphony and go over any notes the conductor may have. Kris and Porter got a program and were shown to their special seating. They were seated in one of the fancy boxes. The boxes where the really fancy people sit. Porter looked down at the other people filing in. What he wanted to do was stand on his seat and shout to all who would listen that his Momma was the harp player. That she was the best Momma in the world. But he knew that wasn't proper symphony etiquette.

The lights came down. And Maestro Solano stepped out take his first bow. The rest of orchestra filed onto the stage. Porter grinned and waved to Anna when he saw her coming. Anna couldn't see much of anything with the lights shining bright on the stage. She knew her boys were up in the box she arranged for them. She takes her seat and adjusts the harp and begins to play. Her first piece in her first concert with the Arendelle Symphony.

* * *

"You were fantastic tonight baby," Kris said, lying his head on her bare belly, rubbing the growing bump. "I have never been more proud."

"I was so scared," Anna said, stroking his hair. "I kept looking up at your box, but the lights were so bright I couldn't see you. I wanted to see you smiling, enjoying the music."

"Baby, you were magnificent tonight," he said, lazily tracing designs with his fingers on her belly. "You are the best thing in my life." He turned his head and slowly began kissing up her body, running his hands over her ribs, using his so erotic sense of touch to drive her crazy. His mouth finds the valley of her breasts and he licks between them, her hands finding his face and guiding it to hers. He kissed her long and deep, not wanting to break it for anything. She is his life, his air, the very song his soul had been searching for. Nothing would ever take him from her.

 


	16. You're Cordially Invited

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 16: You Are Cordially Invited

It was going to be a small ceremony in the afternoon at the park. When Anna was much younger, she always dreamed of a wedding with a packed church full of her friends and family and a huge party that lasted until the very early morning. But that wasn't her life now. Her life now was that of a mother of an eight-year-old boy, lover to a man with unique limitations that didn't stop him and a small business owner. So her wedding to Kristoff Aries Bjorgman was going to be small and intimate. The only people were invited were ones who were vital to their relationship. Rita Hanratty, Michaela and Karen Potter. Olaf and Oaken. Maestro Solano and Marie Claire Hampstead. They extended an invitation to the judge who gave them back Porter but he offered to marry them instead.

Anna agonized over her wedding gown. She knew she wanted something long and white but the details she wanted her future husband to gush over were no longer important. She ended up picking a simple white dress that flowed perfectly in the wind. The pink and white accents give life to her bright blue eyes and red hair. She left her hair down, Kris liked it down, he loved to run his fingers through it. She wasn't going to have the traditional walk down the aisle. She was going to walk first and have her first look be of Kris and Porter, the two loves of her life. Her father was still going to walk her down the aisle and stand beside her when Kris came down to take her hand. Her mother was still refusing to attend stating that Anna was ruining her life, throwing away such opportunities to be a wife and mother.

"Baby, it's time," Agdar said, joining his daughter in the big tent they set up in the park for the dessert reception after the ceremony. He offers his arm to her and she gladly takes it. "I had wished that your mother would have changed her mind."

"I have you and that's enough," Anna said, hugging her father's arm like she used to as a little girl. They stepped out of the tent and Olaf pushed play on the CD player they brought with them. The resident music snobs argued for hours about what the song was going to be that they played before the ceremony. They argued Bach and Pacabel. Beethoven and Mozart. Top Forty and jazz standards. Then Anna found the theme to the 1978 film  _Ice Castles._ The story fit them perfectly and they agreed on the song.

_Please, don't let this feeling end_  
_It's everything I am_  
_Everything I want to be_  
_I can see what's mine now_  
_Finding out what's true_  
_Since I found you_  
_Looking through the eyes of love_

Anna and her father walked through the overhanging trees to where their friends were gathered. Michaela and Karen blew an arch of bubbles over Anna as she passed. Her friends from the symphony doing the same. It was something out of Anna's beloved Hallmark channel movies. In fact the more Anna thought about the events that transpired between her and Kris, the more she realized that they were a Hallmark movie. Minus all the amazing sex, the courtroom drama and the unplanned pregnancy.

_Now, I can take the time_  
_I can see my life_  
_As it comes up shining now_  
_Reaching out to touch you_  
_I can feel so much_  
_Since I found you_  
_Looking through the eyes of love_

She stood under the archway of flowers that Olaf and Oaken made for her. The beautiful roses, silk as to last and to be used in the baby's room. Kris and Porter walked hand in hand through the trees. They were in their own world. Porter pulling his brother along. They were in matching suits with purple ties, purple Chuck Taylor's on their feet. Kris wasn't wearing his sunglasses, his honey brown eyes shining bright in the mid afternoon sun. They were covered in bubbles from their friends as they came closer to Anna and her father.

"Mr. Curtis," Kris said, reaching for Anna's hands. "May I have your daughter's hand in marriage? To love her, to cherish her for as long as I live?"

"You may Mr. Bjorgman," Agdar said, covering their hands with his. He kissed Anna's cheek and joined the others watching the ceremony.

"I'm not in the habit of performing marriages," Judge Weselton said. "But I made an exception for these two remarkable young people. But before I perform the marriage, I have something for them." He takes out an envelope from his jacket pocket and opens it. "It is the order of the Family Court of Arendelle County California that the minor child Porter Nicholas Bjorgman is hereby formally adopted by Kristoff Aries Bjorgman and Anna Amelia Curtis, soon to be Bjorgman."

"Really? It's final?" Anna asked, tears brimming in her eyes. "He's ours? No one can take him from us again?"

"All yours. Kristoff Aries Bjorgman, do you take this woman to be your lawfully wedded wife? To love more than the situations you find yourselves in? To protect her, love her, cherish her, for better or worse, in sickness and in health for as long as you both shall live?"

_And now, I do believe_  
_That even in a storm we'll find some light_  
_Knowing you're beside me, I'm all right_  
_Please, don't let this feeling end_  
_It might not come again_  
_And I want to remember_  
_How it feels to touch you_  
_How I feel so much_  
_Since I found you  
Looking through the eyes of love _

"I do," Kris said, holding her hands in his. "I do." In his minds eye he saw her standing there in front of him, the most beautiful woman in the world. In his mind he saw her as she truly was. The most perfect person for him. While he could never see her in the normal worldly way, he would always see her.

"Anna Amelia Curtis, do you take this man to be your lawfully wedded husband? To love more than trials and tribulations? To protect him, love him, cherish him, for better or worse, in sickness and in health for as long as you both shall live?"

"I do," Anna said cupping Kris's cheek in her hand. "I do."

"Do we have rings?" the judge asked.

Porter nodded, reached into his suit pockets and took out two rings. A large solid gold ring for Kris and a delicate gold ring for Anna. "A ring is a never ending circle and represents the unending love between two people. Kristoff, repeat after me, 'With this ring, I thee wed and with it I give you my promise that from this day forward you shall not walk alone. I have no greater gift to give. May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home. May we walk together through all things. May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are. May you always see the innocence in my eyes. May we feel this joy forever."

"Anna, with this ring, I thee wed and with it I give you my promise that from this day forward you shall not walk alone. I have no greater gift to give. May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home. May we walk together through all things. May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are. May you always see the innocence in my eyes. May we feel this joy forever," Kris whispered, slipping the ring on her hand, squeezing tight.

"Anna, you're turn."

"Kristoff, with this ring, I thee wed and with it I give you my promise that from this day forward you shall not walk alone. I have no greater gift to give. May my heart be your shelter and my arms be your home. May we walk together through all things. May you feel deeply loved, for indeed you are. May you always see the innocence in my eyes. May we feel this joy forever." She pushed the ring over his knuckle, interlocking her hands with his."

"And now by the power vested in my by the state of Colorado, I now pronounce husband and wife. Kristoff, you may kiss your bride."

 


	17. Delivery

 

 

 

Who Said Love is Blind?

Chapter 17: Delivery

"What about this one?" Jillian Larson asked, shopping with Anna at Target for baby clothes. "Yellow is good for all babies."

"I don't want to know what we're having until the baby gets here," Anna said, dropping a package of white onesies into the cart. "It's just one thing I can do to keep Kris a part of all this. He's struggling really, really hard with the whole baby thing."

"He's a proud man Anna," Jillian said. "He wants so much to provide for you and Porter and now the baby that his limitations are getting to him."

"I know. And I am doing everything I can to help him but he won't talk to me. He won't tell me what's wrong."

"Anna, Kris is a very proud man. He won't ask for help unless he absolutely needs it. For a man who thrived on routine and strict schedules, he has adapted to change rather well."

"What do you mean?"

"In less than a year, he has lost and adopted his brother. Fell in love, got married and now a baby. That's a lot of change for a guy who doesn't like change."

"I hadn't thought of it that way," Anna said. "I just showed up and his whole life changed."

"For the better, Anna. For the better. That man was a shell pretending to live. You've rewaken the passion in him that has been lacking since Pabbie and Bulda passed. He's so happy about this."

"I know he is. So is Porter. That kid has been the most helpful kid on the planet. He wants so badly to be a big brother."

"He's going to make a great one."

Anna set down the small pair of shoes she was holding and gripped her belly. She was a day past her due date and her doctor told her she could go into labor at any time. She took a deep breath and steadied herself.

"Anna? Are you all right?"

"Well that one was a lot meaner than the last one," Anna said, trying to lighten the mood. "I think this baby has decided that today's the day."

"I'll call Jonathan and have him bring Kris and Porter to the hospital. The plan is still for Porter to stay with us if becomes too long a night?"

"If we can convince him to leave. Porter wants to be the third person to hold his baby brother or sister."

"Third?"

"After Kris and I," Anna said, grunting again. "All right. All right. I heard you the first time."

They leave the items in the cart and drive to Arendelle General. Jillian called her husband on the way to tell him what was going on and to get Kris and Porter there as soon as possible. Jillian was thankful that she decided to bring Anna's car and not hers because Anna had her hospital bag and everything for the new baby in her car. Anna got checked in and taken up to maternity just as her boys arrived. Porter pulling his big brother down the hall. It was a comical sight. Porter pulling on Kris's arm, Sven trying to keep up with Porter and Kris holding on for dear life.

"Momma! We got here as fast as we could. Kris was so scared we would miss it!" Porter exclaimed, wrapping his arms around Anna's neck.

"I just got here, Porter," Anna said. "It's going to take some time before the baby gets here."

**Three hours, forty, two minutes and eighteen seconds later...**

"All right Mrs. Bjorgman," her doctor said. "One more big push and you'll be all done."

"I can't push anymore," Anna cried. "I'm too tired. I can't. I'm sorry Kris. I can't do this."

"Yes you can. Anna, baby, I'm right here. Hold my hand and give it all you got," Kris coached. "Come on baby. Two more minutes of pain for a lifetime of happiness."

Anna's cries were soon replaced with a baby's. "It's a girl."

"A girl? Oh, Kris, we were both right," Anna gasped as the baby girl was placed on her chest. She took Kris's fingers and traced them along their daughter's face. "Oh Kris, she's so tiny. I think you make sandwiches bigger than she is. She has your nose, poor girl."

"What's wrong with my nose?"

"Nothing, honey. Feel her cheeks," Anna said, running his finger over their daughter's face. Jillian, sitting off to the side with a sleeping Porter, took out Anna's camera from her bag and snapped several photos of the new parents. Kris traced his daughter's face. He knew she was perfect and not a single person could tell him otherwise. With much protest, Anna and Kris allowed the nurses to take their daughter to give her a bath and wrap her up.

"So what are we going to name her?" Kris asked, holding Anna's hand.

"I was thinking about staying with P names," Anna said. "What about Pollyanna?"

"Like the Hayley Mills movie?" Kris asked. "It's cute but I'm afraid it's a little too old fashioned."

"So what are you thinking?" Anna asked.

"If you're heart is set on P, what about something old and Greek? Like Phaedra or even Persephone?"

"Well she wouldn't be one of many Ashley's or Caitlin's," Anna said. "Give me your phone."

"What do you need my phone for?"

"Heads it's Phaedra and tails it's Persephone," Anna said. "Siri, flip a coin."

_It's tails_ , the phone chirps.

"Persephone. Peri for short," Anna said with a smile.

"Persephone Briseis Bjorgman," Kris said. "A warrior queen."

"Porter," Anna said, whispering to her son, waking him up. "Hey baby boy. Come meet your baby sister Persephone."

Porter sleepily walked from where he was sleeping on Jillian's lap to Anna's bed. "She's so pretty Momma." Her eyes fluttered open for a moment and Porter gasped. "Her eyes are just like Kris's."

"What do you mean, buddy?" Kris asked. "Like the color?"

"No Kris. Just like your eyes."

 


	18. All in the Family

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 18: All in the Family

"Well the good news is that your daughter is perfect in every other class," Dr. Powell, the pediatric optomologist said to Anna and Kris. "But the bad news is yes. The genetic abnormality that caused your blindness Mr. Bjorgman has passed down to Persephone."

Kris hung his head and held tight to the cane in his hand. He knew this was going to happen. He knew that he couldn't have something as nice and as beautiful a baby girl without something else going wrong. It was a fact of his life. He can't have something without first losing something else. Gained his brother, lost his parents. Signed the custody papers, lost his fiancé. Found Anna, lost Porter. Got Porter back, Anna lost her job. They get married, Anna loses her mother. They get Persephone, she loses her sight. Guess that's just how that bitch Fate works in his world.

"Well, at least we have someone, a lot of someones, who have helped raise a sightless child so we have plenty of family help," Anna said, knowing full well that Kris was going to remain silent through the whole meeting. In fact he hadn't said one thing about Persephone's blindness since they found out about it. Anna couldn't tell if he was being stoic to be strong for her or if he was blaming himself. If he was blaming himself, she would have to knock some sense into him and fast. She couldn't have him blaming himself for something they couldn't control. They didn't know what the root cause of their eye problems were but they weren't going to break down because of it.

"I would recommend getting her on the list for the blind school as soon as possible," Dr. Powell said. "I am sure their trained professionals will be able to assist you in just about anything you could need. I will want monthly checkups, just to see if there may be a way to restore her sight."

_There won't be_ , Kristoff thought.  _They_ _couldn't give me back mine so I highly doubt that they will be able to with Persephone._

"Thank you Dr. Powell," Anna said. "You have been very helpful." Not unlike her husband. She was angry. Angrier than she has ever been with him. She picked up Persephone's carseat and waited for Kris to join her as they left the hospital. She would wait to yell until they were away from their children. She would never allow Porter and Peri hear them argue. But this time she couldn't hold it in.

"This isn't your fault so why the hell are you acting like it is?" Anna demanded.

"Not my fault? My genes, my fault!" Kris countered.

"Well, she's blind and we're going to have to deal with it," Anna said, staring forward as she drove home.

"She going to be so alone. Just like I was."

"What did Clara do to you?" Anna asked. "Kris, Peri's not alone. She has you. Her father. Who loves her so much. She has me and her brother and Olaf and Oaken, Jillian and Jonathan. My dad. Everyone else is on board. What is holding you back?"

"I never wanted this! I never wanted to burden a child with this. I don't want Persephone to go through the torture I had to endure. I'm not strong enough to protect her from it."

"Her value doesn't diminish because the rest of the world can't see her worth, Kris. And the same goes for you. I love you and I am not going anywhere. I have never seen you as a blind man. I have always seen the man. And the right people in her world will see it too. They won't see a blind girl. They will see the vibrant, beautiful, musical, girl that we will raise. If you can't do that, if you can't get on board with raising this incredible little miracle we created, then I will take my children and we will go stay with my father until you can pull your head out of your ass and quit feeling sorry for yourself and be my husband."

They sat in silence for several blocks. "I'm sorry. I would never take Porter from you. I would never take Persephone from you. But you have to get it together Kris. I can do this without you but I don't want to. But this? This silence? This you can't do. You can't shut me out. You can't."

"I'm still trying to process all of this, Anna," Kris said. "I love you and our daughter but I didn't expect this to happen. I expected her to be perfect."

"And she is Kris. Peri is perfect because she's ours. You and me. We made her and nothing we do together can ever be not perfect."

"It's going to take me some time to get used to this new reality. I need time to figure out what I'm going to do."

"You're not leaving us Kris. That's not an option. That is never an option."

"I never said I was leaving," Kris countered. "I would never leave you. Ever."

"Then stop acting like it. I need you. I love you. But this, this I don't need. This I don't love. You can't shut down on me. Not when we've fought so hard to get to this junction. That little girl sleeping in the backseat needs you to be strong for her."

Anna didn't say anything more for the rest of the drive home and for the rest of the day. She took care of Persephone, helped Porter with his homework and started on dinner. Kris stayed in their room, lying on their bed, generally feeling sorry for himself. Somewhere in that he fell asleep. He found himself standing in a room, black like always until he heard a voice he hadn't in nearly four years. His mother's.

"What the hell is wrong with you, Kristoff Aries Bjorgman?!" his mother demanded. Bulda had never been subtle. It wasn't her style. She was blunt and to the point.

"Nothing," he muttered. He felt her hands on his cheeks, her touch gentle and loving.

"What are you so afraid of?" she asked, her voice softening. "What's got you so rattled?"

"Persephone is blind. Just like me."

"So what? We didn't realize you were blind until almost a month after you were born. So she's blind, that's manageable."

"I never wanted my kids to suffer like I did," Kris said, feeling the stare of his mother. Even though he couldn't see her, he always knew somehow that she was giving him the death glare.

"You never suffered. Sure there were those shitty kids who said shitty things to you but there are always going to be those kinds of people in the world. Try again."

"I don't want her to be limited in the things she can do. She was supposed to-"

"Enough with this supposed to crap," Bulda chided. "Supposed to's have got to be the biggest challenge parents face. Pebble and I were supposed to be here to raise Porter. But that didn't happen. Stop worrying so much and just love that baby girl. That's all you can do. Teach her what you can and let go of the rest. That's what we did with you."

"But-"

"Boy, I hear  _but_  out your mouth one more time, I am going to haunt you for the rest of your life and then kick you repeatedly in the shins for all eternity when you die," Bulda said, smacking Kris on the back of the head. "And don't for one second think I'm kidding. All you can do is love that baby for what she is. Yours. Yours and that wonderful Anna's. That's it. Anything else is just decorations."

Kris woke with a start. It felt like his mother had really been there. In fact the back of his head hurt from where she had smacked him. It was the sense coming back to him. He hadn't held his daughter since she was born. He hadn't helped Anna with a thing since they discovered her blindness. And for that he felt nothing but shame. He stood up and raced (as safely as he could) into the kitchen and wrapped his wife tight in his arms.

"What has gotten into you?" Anna asked, surprised.

"I'm sorry Anna. I was a colossal asshat," he said, kissing her.

"I should say so."

He tapped with his cane towards the bassinet where Persephone was sleeping soundly. He carefully lifted her into his big arms, she looked so small cradled there. He kissed the top of her head, a tear falling from his eye and landing on her soft cheek. "I am so sorry Peri. Daddy's so sorry."

 


	19. Fearless

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 19: Fearless

The biggest challenge that faced Porter and Anna, being the sighted members of the family was keeping the ever exploring Persephone in one place. The six month old was fearless. Anna was sure she was going to go grey before she turned thirty. After the dream he had with his mom, Kris did a complete turnaround. He would hold Persephone while he was listening to his music. He would tell her stories that he came up with to go along with the music. He was a constant figure at the school for the blind where they enrolled Persephone as soon as she was able to go. Many of the teachers there remember Kris from his days at the school. He would carry her in the chest carriers while they were walking through the grocery store. At times he felt a bit like the pack mule, having Peri strapped to his chest and her diaper bag backpack on but he was happy to be able to do something. What insecurities he had about being a part of his child's life as an active parent had vanished. Anna couldn't have been more pleased.

The family was at the store when Porter came to a sudden stop after rounding the corner of the frozen food section. A girl about Kristof's age was standing in front of the ice cream, her long brown hair pulled back into a long braid. She wore simple jeans and a long sleeved t-shirt, black. Having made the sudden stop, Kris crashed into the back of the little boy's legs.

"Dude, Porter, you can't just stop in the center of the aisle," Kris said.

"It's Clara," Porter whispered.

Anna turned to look at the woman who once held the keys to her Kris's heart. She was taller than Anna, which isn't hard. She was all angles and sharp edges.  _So this is the person who demanded that Kris give Porter away like he was nothing. So this is the bitch to made him feel like he was nothing but a blind man to be pitied. Turn around. I dare you._

And she did. Her face still and unsure of what she should do. Clara Houston had kept up with the what was going on with Kristoff and Porter, even though she knew he would never take her back. Not after what she said about Porter when Buida and Pabbie had passed away. She still loved Kris, that was evident in the twinge of guilt she felt when she saw him with his new wife. She decided to be the bigger person and make the first move.

"Hey Kris," she said, a pensive smile on her face.

He had erased her voice from his memory banks so it took him a second or two to remember that it was her. His heart tightened in his chest at the recollection of the person behind that voice. He took a deep breath and waited for whatever would happen next. "Clara."

"It's nice to see you," she said, feeling the burn of Anna's stare. "Hey Porter. My God you've gotten tall."

Porter took Anna's hand and smiled up at her. "This is my momma, Anna," he said.

Clara looked beyond the boy and Kristoff's wife to see the small child in the chest carrier strapped to Kris. He hadn't changed a bit since she walked out of the house three years ago. He was still the big, brooding man she loved. But she swallowed down her jealousy and smiled at Anna.

"That's great Porter," she said. She held her hand out to Anna who, against her instincts to just deck this person in the middle of the grocery store, shook her outstretched hand.

"So you're Clara," Anna said, looking the girl up and down. Porter, being the smart boy that he was picked up on the tension between his momma and the lady his brother used to date. He remembered her and what she did to his brother that all he wanted to do was kick her in the shins.

Clara looked past Anna and to Kris and the bundle strapped to his chest. "Hey Kris. who you got there?"

"This is my daughter, Persephone Briesis Bjorgman," Kris said, a big smile on his face. Ever since his thing with his mom, he grinned like an idiot whenever he introduced her to people.

"Did you adopt?" Clara asked, speaking only to Kris and ignoring Anna. She looked under the blanket and saw the same blank stare she used to see looking down on her during sex with Kris. "What's wrong with her eyes?"

"Porter, baby, why don't you go over to the books and see if you can find some new ones for us to read with Persephone tonight?" Anna said, directing her son towards the end of the aisle. "Stay there and we'll come get you in a little bit."

Porter readily agreed and hightailed it out of the aisle and out of sight. Anna paused a moment, getting her fight face ready. "First off, there is NOTHING wrong with my daughter's eyes. They are perfect. Secondly, we didn't adopt. She is ours. Mine and Kris's."

"Wow," Clara said, a smirk on her face. "Guess you didn't get snipped like you said you were going to once we got married."

"That's what you wanted," Kris said, low. "Everything was about what you wanted."

"That's not true," Clara said, touching his arm.

Kris shifted uncomfortably when she touched him and Anna took it as a sign to make a break for it. "While it was nice to see you, Clara, Persephone has to eat soon and I don't want to make her wait any longer than I have to."

Anna looped her arm around Kris's and whistled for Sven to keep up. She had to get away from that woman before she said or did something she would regret. Clara stood back and watched them pass by.

"Sucks to be a caretaker doesn't it?" Clara snipped as Anna passed her.

"I'm not a caretaker, bitch. I'm his wife and I love him more than you ever did. Blindness and all."

Clara scoffed and walked away but not before Sven moved in front of her and tripped her. Even the dog hated her. Anna playfully scolded the dog and reminded herself to give him an extra scoop of peanut butter tonight when he went to bed.

 


	20. 20 Years Later

**Who Said Love is Blind?**

Chapter 20: 20 Years Later

Anna Amelia Bjorgman was nervous. More nervous than she had ever been in her entire life. More nervous than she had been on her first day as a teacher. More nervous than her first performance with the Arendelle Symphony. Today she was attending her daughter Persephone's first concert at Juilliard. Persephone Briseis Bjorgman was conducting her first orchestra piece, written by her. Just like Anna said, Peri's blindness never stopped her from pursuing music. From the time she was able to sit up, Anna was teaching Peri the piano. Then they moved on to the harp and soon Peri was wanting to explore and write her own music.

"Momma! Kris!" Twenty-nine year old Porter Nicholas Bjorgman called from the other side of the hotel room. "The car's here!"

Porter, while he loved music like his parents, found a different calling when he hit college. Porter, like Kris, found a passion for numbers and became an accountant just like his big brother. He had his own business and handled several large businesses and single clients. He did very well for himself. It didn't shock them at all when Porter brought home Martin Carlson for Christmas break during his junior year of college. It didn't surprise them either when they found out Martin was deaf. Quite the family they were.

Sven the Third lay by the front door, ever watchful of the family. Like the two Svens before him, Sven the Third was a dalmatian. Kris liked the way dalmatians behaved and he was so used to that breed of dog that it was easy for him to get along with a new dog. Peri's service dog was a standard black poodle named Bach.

When Martin joined their family, Anna dove head first into ASL. She took classes at the college, hung out with the deaf students and made sure that she was able to be the best Momma to this boy. It broke her heart when Martin told her that his own parents had disowned him when he came out. They couldn't accept him and she knew first hand what that was like. Her own mother still remained in the dark about her grandchildren. Porter and Peri were fantastic kids and it was Indun's loss that she chose not to be in their lives. Anna's father however, was at every single recital, baseball game, graduation ceremony, however mundane it may have been; with bells and whistles.

"Everyone ready to go?" Anna called and signed, not sure where her boys were.

"Waiting on you Momma," Porter said from the door. "Peri will kill us if we're late."

Kris held out his hand for his wife of twenty years. Twenty years, three kids, five dogs and a lifetime of happiness. Twenty years of raising a blind child to be more than her disability. Raising a little girl who wouldn't take no for an answer. Anna snuggled into his side and they climbed into the car and drove through the bright lights of New York City.

"And taking the stage for her first night as student conductor of the Julliard Orchestra, preforming  _Who Said Love is Blind_ , Persephone Briseis Bjorgman," the announcer said.

Peri tapped her way to the podium and stepped up and took her baton in her hand. She nodded and the music began. Soft plucking of the violins and a harp began the piece. Anna sat in complete fascination as her daughter, her reddish blonde hair pulled up in a fancy updo. Peri looked so beautiful in her long black dress.

"Kris, you would never know. She carries herself with such grace and pride. If she's afraid, it doesn't show." She looked down the row to her two other boys. Porter was signing to his husband, explaining the story behind the music. Kris. Kris's eyes were closed and his own hand conducting the beat along with Peri. It was everything Anna had always dreamed of. Family and music. What else is there?

 


	21. Porter and Martin

 

 

 

**Who Said Love is Blind? Headcanon: When Porter Found Martin**

Porter Bjorgman didn't go looking for love when he left for college. He was looking for an education. Something that would help him have the same kind of life that he'd always known. Little did he know that he would meet his soulmate.

Porter always struggled with his identity. While in high school he tried dating but he wasn't like his friends and never found any of the girls to be what he was looking for. He had feeling deep down that he was gay and that he wasn't going to be accepted.

Anna sat her boy down and told him, "Kris and I will love you no matter who you are. And if you want to ask Kevin Reilly to the prom, go right ahead."

Well his prom invite didn't go so well so he and Anna went to the symphony instead and she let him play the timpani drums after the performance. Porter was an excellent musician and while he liked music he didn't want to pursue it as much as his baby sister. Persephone was the music kid. At seven she was already better at the piano than he would ever be and he was okay with that.

Of all the languages Porter could take while in college he chose American Sign Language. Anna thought it had more to do with growing up in a house that was so different that he had to do something that would be different as well.

"If you wanted to do something different why not learn an ancient dead language like Egyptian hieroglyphics?" Kris had teased.

"Because you can't use Egyptian hieroglyphics in everyday conversation," Porter countered.

While in school he met and dated many different kinds of guys. There was Marcus the jock, Finn the artist, Michael the academic, Oliver the frat boy and Franz Alexander the German exchange student. But none that he ever wanted to bring home to meet his family. Marcus once made a crack about a person with a service dog in the store. Needless to say their relationship didn't move much farther after that.

Martin was two years older than Porter but in the same stage of school. Martin had taken a year to travel and decide what he wanted and then came to school. They met in the ASL classes when their professor wasn't there and Martin took over the class. One could say that what Martin and Porter felt was love at first sight but they took things slow. Both didn't want to rush into a relationship. They wanted to take the time to figure each other out.

"So your brother is also your dad? How does that work?" Martin asked during their tenth date.

"Our parents died when I was five. Kris was so much older than I was. I was a miracle baby. When I was eight we met Momma and from there it was like it was supposed to be."

* * *

"Okay family," Anna said, watching from the window. "Porter's bringing his boyfriend with him. So I want us all to be on our best behavior."

"Momma," Persephone said from the piano. "When are we not on our best behavior?"

"I wasn't talking to you. I was talking to Sven the Second and Octoberfest."

The snoozing dalmatians popped their heads up at the sounds of their names. Realizing they weren't going outside or getting treats they laid back down and started snoring. Porter's car pulled up and he and Martin sat in the driveway for a moment.

"Momma's a hugger," Porter signed to Martin. "Kris and Peri will be a bit stand-offish until they get used to you. Don't be surprised if my sister is glued to her piano. She's practicing her audition pieces for Juilliard."

"Porter," Martin said, pulling his face towards him. "They're your family. If they're anything like you. I know I'm going to love them. Just like I love you."

"I love you too, Martin."

 


	22. Annabelle Bridget Bjorgman-Carlson (Drabble/Headcanon)

Porter and Martin adopt a little girl that they rename Annabelle Bridget Bjorgman-Carlson. She was injured in a drunk driving accident that left her paralyzed and unable to really speak. She is able to sign and that is what drew her to Porter and Martin. They manage, by the grace of God, to keep the adoption a secret from Anna and Kris, until the day they brought her home. 

“Kris! Peri! The boys are here!” Anna exclaimed seeing Porter get out of the new van they bought to help with Annabelle. “They got a new car.”

“How nice for Porter,” Peri said, carefully closing the lid to her piano. 

Martin wheeled Annabelle out of the van and began to push her towards the house, Porter walking beside them, his arm around Martin’s waist. The little boy that Anna knew was still there, in the grin and smile as he walked up the ramp to the house.

She ripped open the door, read to murder her child and his husband for not telling her about this. A smile and tears were on their faces. 

“Annabelle, this is your grandma Anna,” Porter said, signing for his husband. “Momma, this is our daughter, Annabelle.”


End file.
